Phytochemical properties and functional characteristics of wild turmeric (Curcuma aromatica) fermented with Rhizopus oligosporus

Juho Lim; Thi Thanh Hanh Nguyen; Kunal Pal; Choon Gil Kang; Chanho Park; Seung Wook Kim; Doman Kim

doi:10.1016/j.fochx.2021.100198

Phytochemical properties and functional characteristics of wild turmeric (Curcuma aromatica) fermented with Rhizopus oligosporus

Food Chem X. 2021 Dec 30:13:100198. doi: 10.1016/j.fochx.2021.100198. eCollection 2022 Mar 30.

Authors

Juho Lim¹, Thi Thanh Hanh Nguyen², Kunal Pal³, Choon Gil Kang⁴, Chanho Park⁴, Seung Wook Kim⁴, Doman Kim^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Graduate School of International Agricultural Technology, Seoul National University, Pyeongchang-gun, Gangwon-do 25354, South Korea.
² Institute of Food Industrialization, Institutes of Green Bioscience and Technology, Seoul National University, Pyeongchang-gun, Gangwon-do 25354, South Korea.
³ Department of Biotechnology and Medical Engineering, National Institute of Technology, Rourkela 769008, India.
⁴ Ottogi Corporation, Anyang-si, Gyeonggi-do 14060, South Korea.

Abstract

This study investigated the effect of solid-state fermentation of wild turmeric (Curcuma aromatica) with Rhizopus oligosporus, a common fungus found in fermented soy tempeh, on phytochemical and biological properties. Ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry showed that fermented wild turmeric has higher concentrations of curcumin, demethoxycurcumin, bisdemethoxycurcumin, phenolic compounds and total flavonoid-curcuminoid after fermentation for 1-, 3-, and 5-day relative to non-fermented turmeric. The l-carnitine content reached 242 µg g^-1 extract after fermentation for 7-day. Wild turmeric had 1.47- and 2.25-fold increases in ORAC and FRAP, respectively, after 3-day fermentation. The inhibitory effects of fermented wild turmeric on lipid accumulation from 3T3-L1 cells, nitric oxide production from lipopolysaccharide-stimulated RAW264.7 murine macrophages, and melanin formation by B16F10 mouse melanoma cells with α-MSH increased 1.08-, 1.44-, and 1.52-fold, respectively, after 3-day fermentation. Based on these results, fermented wild turmeric product can be used as a functional ingredient in the cosmeceutical and nutraceutical industries.

Keywords: Anti-inflammation; Lipid-accumulation; Rhizopus oligosporus; Solid-state fermentation; Wild turmeric; l-carnitine.