Caigua | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Rosids |
Order: | Cucurbitales |
Family: | Cucurbitaceae |
Genus: | Cyclanthera |
Species: | C. pedata |
Binomial name | |
Cyclanthera pedata (L.) Schrader | |
Synonyms [1] | |
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Cyclanthera pedata, known as caigua, is a herbaceous vine grown for its edible fruit, which is predominantly used as a vegetable. It is known from cultivation only, and its use goes back many centuries as evidenced by ancient phytomorphic ceramics from Peru depicting the fruits.
Not known in the wild, but presumably native to the Andes where it has been traditionally cultivated. [2]
Cyclanthera pedata is a vine that can be 12 m long; the stems are thin; and the leaves can be up to 24 cm long, palmate or pedate in shape. [2] The small flowers can be greenish or white and are borne in racemes. [2] The fruit is light green, ovoid, curved, up to 15 cm long, almost hollow (except for the seeds and a thin flesh layer), with smooth skin or sometimes covered in soft spines; the seeds are black. [2] [3]
Cyclanthera pedata is grown at small scale farming in mountain areas of Mexico, Central America and South America. [2] It is sometimes cultivated in Asia. [2] This species can be grown in mountain areas up to 2000, being adapted to cool temperatures. [2] [4]
Known in the Andes as caigua [4] or caihua [4] (possibly from Quechua kaywa); [5] also as achocha [4] (possibly from Quechua achuqcha). [5] In English it is named stuffing cucumber or slipper gourd. [2] In Costa Rica it is called Jaiva. In Darjeeling, India, it is called Chuchay Karela. In Chinese, it is known as 小雀瓜.
The fruits are eaten after removing the seeds. Young fruits can be eaten fresh, added to salads, sautéed, or served as a side dish. Mature fruits are typically stuffed with meats, fish, or cheese and can be fried, breaded, or baked. [6] Young shoots and leaves can also be eaten as greens. [2] The fruits are a source of potassium, magnesium and phosphorus. [7] Fruit flavor is similar to cucumber crossed with green bean or otherwise tasteless. [2] [3]
Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Energy | 17 kcal (71 kJ) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
4 g | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Dietary fiber | 0.7 g | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
0.1 g | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
0.6 g | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Other constituents | Quantity | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Water | 94.1 % | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
†Percentages estimated using US recommendations for adults, [9] except for potassium, which is estimated based on expert recommendation from the National Academies. [10] |
The fruits contain flavonoid glycosides [11] of which four show an antioxidant effect. [12]
Caigua fruits generally exhibit high antioxidant activity but a low total phenolic content, which indicates that non-phenolic water-soluble compounds might be involved. [13] Flavonoids are present in this cyclanthera species, which have antioxidant properties as well and were shown that with a high intake are correlated to a decrease in heart disease. [11]
Dried samples of caigua showed α-amylase inhibition and relevant ACE inhibitory activities. [13] The anticholesterolemic activity of caigua was confirmed, promoting cholesterol metabolism and bile acids synthesis in a hepatic cell model, with the extract showing novel choleretic activity. [14]
A negative aspect of caigua is, that the seeds contain a group of trypsin inhibitors, which negatively affect protein absorption. [15]
Other chemicals in the Caigua include triterpenoid saponins and the seeds have been reported with six cucurbitacin glycosides. [16] as well as 28-30 amino acids. [15]
Caigua (Cyclanthera pedata) has been traditionally used in South American folk medicine for its alleged anti-inflammatory, hypoglycemic, and hypocholesterolemic effects, particularly in the management of blood pressure and cholesterol levels. [17] It is believed to be effective against atherosclerosis, circulation problems, and is used as an analgesic. Infusions made from Caigua are commonly consumed to help control hypertension and improve cholesterol levels. [18] In post-menopausal women, daily oral doses of dehydrated Caigua fruit have been shown to significantly reduce serum cholesterol. [19]
The Moche culture often depicted this species in their ceramics. [20] Remains of this species have also been found buried in archaeological sites on the Peruvian coast. [21]
Sambucus is a genus of flowering plants in the family Adoxaceae. The various species are commonly referred to as elder, elderflower or elderberry.
Flavonoids are a class of polyphenolic secondary metabolites found in plants, and thus commonly consumed in the diets of humans.
Polyphenols are a large family of naturally occurring phenols. They are abundant in plants and structurally diverse. Polyphenols include phenolic acids, flavonoids, tannic acid, and ellagitannin, some of which have been used historically as dyes and for tanning garments.
Citrus depressa (Citrus × depressa, formerly C. pectinifera, Okinawan: シークヮーサー/シークァーサー, romanized: shiikwaasa, Japanese: ヒラミレモン, romanized: hirami remon or シークヮーサー, shiikwāsā, in English sometimes called shiikuwasha, shequasar, Taiwan tangerine, Okinawa lime, flat lemon, hirami lemon, or thin-skinned flat lemon, is a small citrus fruit often harvested and used when green, rich in flavonoids and native to East Asia.
Quercetin is a plant flavonol from the flavonoid group of polyphenols. It is found in many fruits, vegetables, leaves, seeds, and grains; capers, red onions, and kale are common foods containing appreciable amounts of it. It has a bitter flavor and is used as an ingredient in dietary supplements, beverages, and foods.
Naringenin is a flavanone from the flavonoid group of polyphenols. It is commonly found in citrus fruits, especially as the predominant flavonone in grapefruit.
Rutin is the glycoside combining the flavonol quercetin and the disaccharide rutinose. It is a flavonoid glycoside found in a wide variety of plants, including citrus.
A polyphenol antioxidant is a hypothesized type of antioxidant studied in vitro. Numbering over 4,000 distinct chemical structures mostly from plants, such polyphenols have not been demonstrated to be antioxidants in vivo.
Oenocarpus bacaba is an economically important monoecious fruiting palm native to South America and the Amazon rainforest, which has edible fruits. This plant is cited in Flora Brasiliensis by Carl Friedrich Philipp von Martius. It can reach up to 20–25 metres tall and 15–25 cm in diameter. It grows in well-drained sandy soils of the Amazon basin.
Flavonols are a class of flavonoids that have the 3-hydroxyflavone backbone. Their diversity stems from the different positions of the phenolic –OH groups. They are distinct from flavanols such as catechin, another class of flavonoids, and an unrelated group of metabolically important molecules, the flavins, derived from the yellow B vitamin riboflavin.
Pyrus anatolica is a species of pear in the family Rosaceae. It is endemic to Turkey.
Anthocyanins, also called anthocyans, are water-soluble vacuolar pigments that, depending on their pH, may appear red, purple, blue, or black. In 1835, the German pharmacist Ludwig Clamor Marquart named a chemical compound that gives flowers a blue color, Anthokyan, in his treatise "Die Farben der Blüthen". Food plants rich in anthocyanins include the blueberry, raspberry, black rice, and black soybean, among many others that are red, blue, purple, or black. Some of the colors of autumn leaves are derived from anthocyanins.
Phenolic compounds—natural phenol and polyphenols—occur naturally in wine. These include a large group of several hundred chemical compounds that affect the taste, color and mouthfeel of wine. These compounds include phenolic acids, stilbenoids, flavonols, dihydroflavonols, anthocyanins, flavanol monomers (catechins) and flavanol polymers (proanthocyanidins). This large group of natural phenols can be broadly separated into two categories, flavonoids and non-flavonoids. Flavonoids include the anthocyanins and tannins which contribute to the color and mouthfeel of the wine. The non-flavonoids include the stilbenoids such as resveratrol and phenolic acids such as benzoic, caffeic and cinnamic acids.
Fisetin (7,3′,4′-flavon-3-ol) is a plant flavonol from the flavonoid group of polyphenols. It can be found in many plants, where it serves as a yellow/ochre colouring agent. It is also found in many fruits and vegetables, such as strawberries, apples, persimmons, onions and cucumbers. Its chemical formula was first described by Austrian chemist Josef Herzig in 1891.
The phenolic content in tea refers to the phenols and polyphenols, natural plant compounds which are found in tea. These chemical compounds affect the flavor and mouthfeel of tea. Polyphenols in tea include catechins, theaflavins, tannins, and flavonoids.
In biochemistry, naturally occurring phenols are natural products containing at least one phenol functional group. Phenolic compounds are produced by plants and microorganisms. Organisms sometimes synthesize phenolic compounds in response to ecological pressures such as pathogen and insect attack, UV radiation and wounding. As they are present in food consumed in human diets and in plants used in traditional medicine of several cultures, their role in human health and disease is a subject of research. Some phenols are germicidal and are used in formulating disinfectants.
Eriocitrin is a flavanone-7-O-glycoside between the flavanone eriodictyol and the disaccharide rutinose. It is commonly found in lemons and other citrus fruits. It is colloquially called lemon flavonoid or a citrus flavonoid, one of the plant pigments that bring color to fruit and flowers. This antioxidant also predominates in Peppermint infusions.
The passion fruit is the fruit of several plants in the genus Passiflora.
Litsea garciae, also known as engkala, engkalak, kangkala, pangalaban and Borneo avocado, is a flowering plant belonging to the family Lauraceae and genus Litsea. It is native to Taiwan, the Philippines, Borneo, the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, Java, and Sulawesi.