Abstract: Curcumin has attracted extensive research attention due to its various biological activities. However, its low water solubility and biochemical/structural degradation during physiological transport lead to a low bioavailability which largely limits its economic value. Therefore, a large number of curcumin-based drug delivery systems have been introduced. The inclusion of curcumin into a biopolymer-based membrane delivery system is considered to have broad prospects. Polysaccharides and proteins are widely used as the polymeric carriers for the delivery of a variety of biologically active natural compounds. In this article, the challenges in the process of curcumin delivery and the recent progress in the construction of curcumin membrane delivery systems are summarized. Special focus is placed on reviewing the application of curcumin membrane delivery systems in food antioxidant packaging, freshness monitoring and antibacterial preservation, aiming to provide a theoretical basis for further development and application of curcumin.

Key words: curcumin, membrane delivery system, antioxidant, freshness monitoring, antibacterial