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Botany
Climbing, herbaceous vine,
5 to 6 meters high. Stems are green, 4-angled, slightly fairy and disagreeable
in odor. Roots are tuberous and whitish. Leaves are hairy on both surfaces,
rounded and broad, 7 to 14 cm long, 3- to 5-lobes that are broad, rounded
or obtuse; the sinuses rounded, broad or narrow; base is broadly heart-shaped.
Staminate inflorescences are long-peduncled and axillary with 6 to 15
flowers. Petals are white, fimbriate, oblong, about 1.3 cm long. Fruits
is ellipsoid, 3-4 cm diameter, green and mottled with longitudinal gray
stripes when young, orange-red when mature. Seeds are half-ellipsoid,
compressed, undulate, imbeded in a soft, foetid, bitter and red pulp.
Distribution
In thickets at
low and medium altitudes, in the northern provinces and the Laguna
and Rizal provinces.
Properties
• Considered abortifacient,
anthelmintic, emetic and purgative.
Fruit is purgative and emetic.
Root is cathartic, aperient.
Constituents
• Root extract study isolated bryonolic acid, chondrillasteryl glucoside, bryononic acid, cucurbitacin B, dihydrocucurbitacin B,
Parts
utilized and preparation
Leaves, stems,
shoots, fruit.
Uses
Folkloric
Two ounces of root
juice is a drastic purgative.
Roots used for expelling worms.
Leaf juice rubbed externally for fevers.
In China, widely used
it traditional medicine.
Roots used for diabetes, skin swellings likes boils and furuncles.
Stalks and leaves for fevers.
In Ayurvedic medicine,
a constituent in many formulations; used for treatment of liver disorders.
In India, seeds have been sued for dysentery, coughs and as an emetic.
Used as a purgative; for fever and bronchitis.
Studies
• Anti-diabetic:
Trichosanthes cucurmerina impoves glucose
tolerance and tissue glycogen in non insulin dependent diabetes mellitus
induced rats: Study showed T cucurmerina possess antidiabetic activity
with improvement in oral glucose tolerance and glucose uptake in peripheral
tissues.
• Anti-inflammatory:
Anti-inflammatory activity of root tubers of trichosanthes cucumerina
(LINN) in mouse's hind paw oedema induced by carrageenin.
• Hepatoprotective:
A study of the methanolic extract of the whole plant of Tricosanthes
cucumerina, evaluated for hepatoprotective activity against carbon tetrchloride
induced heapatotoxicity, showed histopath changes that support the protective
effect of the extract and scientifically supports its use in various
Ayurvedic preparations and traditional medicine for treatment of heaptic
disorders.
• Anti-fertility:
The ethanol extract of TC was evaluated for antiovulatory activity in
adult rats. The extract affected normal estrous cycle, reduced the number
of healthy follicles and increased the number of regressing follicles.
The study observed antiovulatory activity of the EE of the whole plant
of TC.
• Gastroprotective:
Results show the hot water extract of Tricosanthes cucumerina possesses significant and dose-dependent gastroprotective effects in the alcohol model. The same dose also mediated a significant gastroprotective activity in the indomethacin model. In both, the effect was comparable with that produced by cimetidine.
• Bioactive Constituents of Root and Fruit Juice:
Study of root and fruit juice isolated bryonolic acid, chondrillasteryl glucoside, bryononic acid, cucurbitacin B and dihydrocucurbitacin B. The isolated compounds showed antimalarial and antiviral activity.
• Antibacterial:
Sudies on extracts of the leaves of Trichosanthes cucumerina screened for antibacterial activity against various pathogenic bacteria (B cerus, E faecalis, S paratyphi, S aureus, E coli, Strep faecalis, P vulgaris, K pneumonia, P aeruginosa and S marcescens) showed the ethyl acetate, chloroform and methanol extracts of T cucumerina leaves showed pronounced activity on all organisms tested with activity comparable to standard antibiotics. Results suggest the extracts can be used as a potential external antiseptic and incorporated into drug formulations.
Availability
Wild-crafted. |
