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The efficacy of curcumin and capsaicin in causing regression of pre-established cholesterol gallstones (CGS) was investigated in male mice. After confirming the formation of CGS in 100% of the animals, they were fed a diet containing 0.5% curcumin or 5 mg% capsaicin for 5 or 10 weeks. Five weeks feeding of curcumin or capsaicin diet caused a regression of CGS in 45 and 64% of the animals respectively. Ten weeks feeding of these spice principles caused regression of CGS in 80% of the animals. The biliary cholesterol decreased and phospholipids and bile acids increased with increase in the duration of spice principle feeding. Feeding of a control diet to the animals bearing CGS neither caused regression of CGS nor influenced the biliary lipids significantly.

The efficacy of curcumin and capsaicin in reducing the incidence of cholesterol gallstones (CGS), induced experimentally by feeding a lithogenic diet, was examined in weanling mice and hamsters. After feeding the lithogenic diet for the optimal duration of 10 weeks for mice and 6 weeks for hamsters, CGS were found in 100% of mice and hamsters. Feeding a diet containing 0.5% curcumin or capsaicin 5 mg/100 g for 6 weeks to hamsters reduced the incidence of CGS to 44 or 22%, respectively, compared with the lithogenic group (100%). Biliary cholesterol concentrations and cholesterol:phospholipid ratios (C:PL) were markedly reduced by curcumin and capsaicin feeding. Further cholesterol saturation indices (CSI) of the curcumin and capsaicin groups were 0.54 and 0.35, respectively, compared with 1.56 for the lithogenic group. A dose-response study in which mice were fed on a lithogenic diet supplemented with capsaicin 1.5, 5 or 15 mg/100 g showed that a 5-mg containing diet was more effective than the other 2 in reducing CGS incidence, biliary, serum and liver cholesterol, C:PL ratio, and CSI of bile. Hence, curcumin and capsaicin appear to be potent antilithogenic agents.