A German study published in the journal Stem Cell Research and Therapy shows that a chemical compound in turmeric, a spice commonly found in curries, could potentially speed up the growth of brain cells. During the study, conducted in Julich, rats were injected with the compound, aromatic-turmerone, and researchers then scanned their brains. The results showed increased levels of activity in areas of the brain that are known to be involved in growing nerve cells.

A separate part of the study took neural stem cells (NSCs) of rodents, which have the ability to transform into any type of rodent brain cell, and bathed them in aromatic-turmerone. Researchers found that this compound accelerated both the growth of the NSCs and their specialization into specific kinds of brain cells. According to one of the researchers: Dr. Maria Adele Rueger in an interview with the BBC, past research into NSCs has proved them sufficient to repair the brain in fish and smaller animals, but not yet in humans and higher developed species.

“It is interesting that it might be possible to boost the effectiveness of the stem cells with aromatic-turmerone.” Dr. Rueger said. “And it is possible this in turn can help boost repair in the brain.”

No human trials have been conducted or even scheduled, but the team is now considering if and how they could be carried out.

There is no guarantee that these results would be paralleled in humans, and it is entirely unclear how aromatic-turmerone would affect diseases like Alzheimer’s or if, when paired with NSCs, it could help repair damaged areas of the brain after a stroke. “We’d need to see further studies to fully understand this compound’s effects in the context of a complex disease like Alzheimer’s,” said Dr. Laura Phipps of Alzheimer’s Research UK to the BBC, “and until then people shouldn’t take this as a sign to stock up on supplies of turmeric for the spice rack.”