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Anti-Hyperglycemic Property Of Medicinal Plants
Published in Amit Baran Sharangi, K. V. Peter, Medicinal Plants, 2023
Karanpreet Singh Bhatia, Arpita Roy, Navneeta Bhardavaj
Momordica charantia, with common name bitter gourd, is a member of Cucurbitaceae family and grown in Asia, Africa, and the Caribbean for its edible fruit. It is a tropical and subtropical vine and has been used as an herbal medicine in Asian and African countries from a long time. Triterpene, protein, steroid, alkaloids, lipids, and phenolic compounds present in bitter gourd are responsible for its anti-diabetic potential (Saeed et al., 2010). M. charantia has been shown to possess anti-hyperglycemic and anti-oxidant activity in AI hyperglycemic rats. Treatment of diabetic rats for 30 days with aqueous extract of bitter gourd and seed powder of T. foenum-graecum showed significant reduction in FBG level (p<0.001) (Tripathi et al., 2010). Ahmed et al. (2004) have investigated role of bitter gourd which showed improved insulin secretion in STZ-I hyperglycemic rats. They confirmed the secretion of insulin through beta cells after administration of bitter gourd orally by using immunohistochemical methods (Ahmed et al., 2004). Potential of bitter gourd as an anti-hyperglycemic agent in type 1 Diabetes male Wister rats was investigated using plasmatic cytokine quantification. It was shown that by decreasing high blood glucose, bitter gourd juice prompted a favorable phenotypic shift from proinflammatory Th1 towards an anti-inflammatory Th2 status in T1D rats as it consists of anti-oxidant components in its juice (Fachinan et al., 2017).
Perspectives of Nature-Oriented Pharmacotherapeutics for the Effectual Management of Hemorrhoidal Symptoms
Published in Debarshi Kar Mahapatra, Cristóbal Noé Aguilar, A. K. Haghi, Applied Pharmaceutical Practice and Nutraceuticals, 2021
Taranpreet Kaur Bamrah, Mojabir Hussen Ansari, Debarshi Kar Mahapatra
Momordica charantia (bitter melon or bitter gourd) is a flowering vine belonging to the family Cucurbitaceae. The juice of fresh leaves of bitter melon is very useful in treating bleeding hemorrhoids. Three teaspoons of this leaf juice along with a glass of buttermilk is to be taken every morning for treating hemorrhoidal conditions. The paste of the roots of the bitter gourd plant can also be applied over the hemorrhoids for beneficial results.
Ameliorating Insulin Signalling Pathway by Phytotherapy
Published in Mahendra Rai, Shandesh Bhattarai, Chistiane M. Feitosa, Ethnopharmacology of Wild Plants, 2021
The species is a tropical and subtropical vine of the family Cucurbitaceae, growing up to 5 cm in length. Commonly known as “bitter gourd”, it is popular for its effectiveness to manage T2DM. It is a perennial herb with unbranched tendrils. Plants are dioecious or monoecious. Male flowers are solitary or in a raceme; pedicel often with a large bract calyx tube and corolla yellow or white in color, rotate or broadly campanulate and 5-lobed. In female flowers, the ovary is oblong or fusiform; style elongate; stigmas 3, undivided or 2-lobed; ovules numerous and horizontal (Shu et al. 2011b). Plants contain active phytochemical compounds, such as triterpenes, proteins, momorcharin steroids, fatty acid, lauric, myriaatic, palmitic, stearic and linolaic. Charantin is a typical cucurbitane-type triterpenoid found on M. charantia (Goo et al. 2016). Some of the crucial chemical compounds are exhibited in Figure 15.16.
An Overview of Hepatocellular Carcinoma with Emphasis on Dietary Products and Herbal Remedies
Published in Nutrition and Cancer, 2022
Deepa S. Mandlik, Satish K. Mandlik
Momordica charantia lectin (MCL) is a type II ribosome-inactivating protein obtained from bitter gourd, a vegetable used commonly. In Vitro and In Vivo, MCL treatment significantly reduced HCC cell growth by inducing G2/M phase arrest, autophagy and apoptosis (70). Furthermore, in cultured Hep G2 cells, MAP30 (type I ribosome-inactivating protein) isolated from bitter gourd, showed both cytostatic and cytotoxic impact. The activities were due to the induction of S phase cell cycle arrest and activation of extrinsic and intrinsic caspase apoptosis.MAP30’s anti-tumor activity has also been revealed In Vivo. RNase MC2 is a ribonuclease found in M. charantia that has been shown to increase apoptosis in both in-vivo and In Vitro studies (71). The antioxidant functions of total phenolic content, chlorogenic acid and anthocyanin content and in-vitro anticancer ability of potato. The highest antioxidant activity was found in Solanum pinnatisectum, which also had the best antiproliferative effects against liver cancer cells (72). The glycoalkaloids contained in potatoes were thought to have anti-tumor properties. In the range of 0.1–10 g/mL, treatment with potato glycoalkaloids (α-chaconine), subdued HepG2 cell progress with lower cytotoxicity to normal liver cells (73).
Poisoning by non-edible squash: retrospective series of 353 patients from French Poison Control Centers
Published in Clinical Toxicology, 2018
G. Le Roux, I. Leborgne, M. Labadie, R. Garnier, S. Sinno-Tellier, J. Bloch, M. Deguigne, D. Boels
The home garden is also a major source of bitter squash. Plants of the Cucurbita pepo species are monoecious, allogamous, and self-pollinating. Entomophily plays a major role in this mode of fertilization since the flowers are an important source of pollen for insects. The controlled hybridizations conducted during the process of obtaining a varietal led to a reduction in the bitterness of squash, as well as of specimens with farming, health, etc. benefits. The genetic factors responsible for the bitterness of the gourds are not well known yet and several hypotheses clash: a single dominant gene or several recessive genes. In spite of this, we can say that it is impossible to distinguish a bitter gourd from an edible gourd only on their morphological aspect. The uncontrolled garden hybridization of colocynth type squash can therefore lead to “offspring” plants (obtained by replanting seeds harvested in year N-1) rich in cucurbitacin, bitter-tasting, and unfit for human consumption. The formation of these bitter plants is accidental and hard to predict. To the best of our knowledge, there is no study on the cultivars likely to specifically produce more cucurbitacins. There was no botanical identification of the cultivar species or vegetable cultivar performed in any of the files in our series. As mentioned in the introduction, this determination is complicated, especially over the phone. Also, in most cases, the squash at issue was consumed in its entirety.
Trypsin inhibitors: promising candidate satietogenic proteins as complementary treatment for obesity and metabolic disorders?
Published in Journal of Enzyme Inhibition and Medicinal Chemistry, 2019
Vanessa Cristina Oliveira de Lima, Grasiela Piuvezam, Bruna Leal Lima Maciel, Ana Heloneida de Araújo Morais
The trypsin inhibitor isolated from bitter gourd (Momordica charantia Linn), a widely consumed vegetable in subtropical regions, showed properties of control of hyperglycemia. Bitter gourd was already used in folk medicine for this purpose, but this fact was proven by the interaction of the inhibitor with the insulin receptor. Experiments and an animal model showed that intraperitoneal administration of the inhibitor mcIRBP in healthy rats and with type I diabetes was able to reduce fasting glucose concentrations in the two groups77,78.