WSU wins grant to help develop arthritis drug from turmeric

Washington State University researchers are working with a Scottsdale, Arizona, company to develop an arthritis drug from turmeric, a spice plant.

The research recently won a $225,000 grant from the National Institutes of Health, WSU announced Friday in a news release.

WSU’s Institute of Biological Chemistry will work with a start-up company, Botanisol LLC, to isolate a anti-inflammatory compound found in the plant tissue.

“Inflammatory disease, especially arthritis, is rapidly increasing with the aging population,” said David Gang, WSU professor and Botanisol chief science officer, in the news release. “The global market for anti-inflammatory drugs is over $60 billion, so it’s a major problem.”

Early published research shows that the turmeric compound reduces inflammation using different pathways from current non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, the news release said.