Abstract The aim of this study was (1) to compare the phytochemistry of different organs of Curcurma longa and assess the antisickling activity of C. longa different apart from the rhizome. In the present study, it was shown that besides the rhizome, other organs of this plant can also have interesting pharmacological properties. The chemical screening of different organs of C. longa showed that secondary metabolites are not distributed in the same proportion in different parts of the plants and each part presents a different phytochemical profile. The rhizome is the storage organ of the plant and contains most of phytoconstituents (anthocyanins, bound quinones, alkaloids, tannins, triterpenoids and free quinones) as found in other organs of the plant. Nevertheless, an advanced phytochemical study is required in order to characterize the phytoconstituents of each organ and then highlight the similarity or not of these chemical compounds. The antisickling activity was evaluated using Emmel test, total methanolic extracts of rhizome, leaves, roots and floral parts (petals and sepals) used in this study showed a high activity. The minimal concentration of normalization was 31.25 µg/ml for the total methanolic extract of leaves and 62.5 µg/ml for other organs. This study demonstrated that C. longa could be used as an alternative for the treatment of sickle cell anemia. Bioguided fractionation studies are useful for identifying the (s) active ingredients and/or the synergy between different phytoconstituents.
Keywords Phytochemical screening, Curcuma longa L, antisickling activity, sickle cell anemia.