Funk, J. L., Frye, J. B., Oyarzo, J. N., Kuscuoglu, N., Wilson, J., McCaffrey, G., Stafford, G., Chen, G., Lantz, R. C., Jolad, S. D., Sólyom, A. M., Kiela, P. R., & Timmermann, B. N. (2006). Efficacy and mechanism of action of turmeric supplements in the treatment of experimental arthritis. Arthritis and rheumatism, 54(11), 3452-64.
BIO5 Collaborators
Janet L Funk, Clark Lantz
Scientific evidence is lacking for the antiarthritic efficacy of turmeric dietary supplements that are being promoted for arthritis treatment. Therefore, we undertook studies to determine the antiarthritic efficacy and mechanism of action of a well-characterized turmeric extract using an animal model of rheumatoid arthritis (RA).
Funk, J. L. (2018). Curcuminoid content and markers of quality of turmeric dietary supplements sold in an urban retail marketplace in the United States. Molecular Nutrition and Food Research.
Funk, J. L., Shigenaga, J. K., Moser, A. H., Krul, E. J., Strewler, G. J., Feingold, K. R., & Grunfeld, C. (1994). Cytokine regulation of parathyroid hormone-related protein messenger ribonucleic acid levels in mouse spleen: paradoxical effects of interferon-gamma and interleukin-4. Endocrinology, 135(1), 351-8.
Under normal physiological conditions, PTH-related protein (PTHrP) is produced in a wide variety of tissues and is thought to act locally in an autocrine or paracrine fashion more analogous to cytokines than to classic hormones such as PTH. In addition, we have recently shown that, like cytokines, PTHrP is induced in the spleen during the response to sublethal doses of endotoxin [lipopolysaccharide (LPS)] an effect that is mediated by tumor necrosis factor (TNF). As complex cytokine cascades are induced in response to infectious or inflammatory stimuli, the effects of other prototypical inflammatory [interferon-gamma (IFN gamma)] or antiinflammatory [interleukin-4 (IL-4)] cytokines on PTHrP gene expression were studied. Paradoxically, IFN gamma (50 micrograms), a cytokine that usually synergizes with TNF, inhibited LPS induction of splenic PTHrP messenger RNA (mRNA) levels in LPS-sensitive C3H/OuJ (OuJ) and LPS-resistant C3H/HeJ (HeJ) mice. The stimulation of splenic PTHrP mRNA levels caused by the administration of TNF alpha or interleukin-1 beta was similarly inhibited by IFN gamma, a type II interferon. In contrast, IFN alpha (50 micrograms), a type I interferon, stimulated splenic levels of PTHrP mRNA. IL-4, a prototypical antiinflammatory cytokine, also had a paradoxical effect on LPS induction of splenic PTHrP mRNA levels. Instead of inhibiting LPS induction of splenic PTHrP mRNA levels in OuJ or HeJ mice, IL-4 (200 ng) actually stimulated PTHrP mRNA levels. These complex cytokine interactions suggest that the expression of PTHrP in response to infectious or inflammatory stimuli depends on the counterbalancing effects of the specific cytokine networks induced by each stimulus.
Bea, J., Lee, V., Blew, R., Funk, J., & Going, S. (2015). Cardiovascular Risk Related to Body Fat and Physical Activity in Young Girls. FASEB JOURNAL, 29.
Wright, L. E., Frye, J. B., Timmermann, B. N., & Funk, J. L. (2010). Protection of Trabecular Bone in Ovariectomized Rats by Turmeric (Curcuma longa L.) Is Dependent on Extract Composition. JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL AND FOOD CHEMISTRY, 58(17), 9498-9504.
