Cucurbitacin biosynthesis in cucurbit crops, their pharmaceutical value and agricultural application for management of biotic and abiotic stress: A review

Maja, Dorcus; Mavengahama, Sydney; Mashilo, Jacob

doi:10.1016/j.sajb.2021.08.044

Cited by 11 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 98 publications

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“…Cucurbitacins have often been reported more biologically active when not glycosylated [ 27 ]; however, if experiments conducted in vitro on various cancer cell lines—including colon, breast, lung, and brain—support the effectiveness of cucurbitacins B, D, E, and I against these kinds of tumors [ 46 ], some glycosylated forms proved to be active as well, since cucurbitacin glucosides (B and E) showed anti-proliferative effects on human breast cancer cells [ 47 ], and recent studies suggested that treatment with Cucurbitacin E-glucoside can also inhibit testosterone-induced benign prostatic hyperplasia in mice [ 48 ]. According to Maja et al [ 43 ], the amount of Cucurbitacin E-glucoside in C. colocynthis leaves was higher than in the other Cucurbitaceae species, reaching values of 1368.4 µg/g FW: here, we observed that in vitro sprouted seedlings retained the ability to accumulate cucurbitacins, especially cucurbitacin E 2-O-glucoside and its aglycone, suggesting a possible future exploitation of this plant cultivation system for the production and recovery of these peculiar metabolites.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 68%

“…Cucurbitacins and cucurbitacin glycosides display several pharmacological properties ranging from anti-ulcer and anti-inflammatory activities to anti-diarrheal and anti-cancer ones. Additionally, cucurbitacins were found to be active against soil-borne pathogens, various insects, and fungi [ 43 ]. The biological activities exerted by cucurbitacins are probably related to their chemical nature [ 27 ]: in fact, their hydrophobic features might positively drive the absorption of these compounds through biological membranes and into cells.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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In Vitro Sprouted Plantlets of Citrullus colocynthis (L.) Schrad Shown to Possess Interesting Levels of Cucurbitacins and Other Bioactives against Pathogenic Fungi

Marzouk

Refifa

Montalbano

et al. 2022

Plants

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Cucurbitacins, structurally different triterpenes mainly found in the members of Cucurbitaceae, possess a vast pharmacological potential. Genus Cucurbita, Cucumis, and Citrullus are affluent in these bioactive compounds, and, amongst them, Citrullus colocynthis (L.) Schrad. is widely exploited in folk medicine, since a huge number of diseases are successfully treated with organic and aqueous extracts obtained from different organs and tissues of the plant. The well-known pharmacological activities of such species have been attributed to its peculiar composition, which includes cucurbitacins and other bioactive molecules; thus, owing to its high importance as a valuable natural resource for pharmaceuticals and nutraceuticals, C. colocynthis propagation and multiplication protocols are considered significant, but the exploitation of its phytochemical potential is limited by the restricted cultivation conditions and the low rate of seed germination in the natural environment; in fact, the assessment of accumulation rate of specific phytochemicals under controlled conditions is still missing. Axenically sprouted plantlets obtained without the use of culture media or the addition of hormones have been evaluated here for the production of bioactive compounds and relevant bioactive features. Our results proved that derived organic extracts contain cucurbitacins and other bioactives, show antioxidant potential, and exert activity against some pathogenic fungi (Candida krusei, C. albicans, C. parapsilosis, C. glabrata, and Aspergillus flavus), supporting the feasibility of a methodology intended to scale-up cultivation of this species as a source of pharmaceutically interesting compounds, achievable from plantlets cultivated under laboratory conditions.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 68%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

In Vitro Sprouted Plantlets of Citrullus colocynthis (L.) Schrad Shown to Possess Interesting Levels of Cucurbitacins and Other Bioactives against Pathogenic Fungi

Marzouk

Refifa

Montalbano

et al. 2022

Plants

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“…Cucurbitacins are a group of bitter and highly oxidized tetracyclic triterpenoids that are widely distributed in the Cucurbitaceae family (Mohamed et al., 2022). They are present in the leaves, flowers, fruits, seeds, and roots of various plants within the Cucurbitaceae family, including Trichosanthes, Cucurbita, Cucumis, and Citrullus (Maja et al., 2022). Despite their toxicity, cucurbitacins have been used in traditional medicine for centuries and continue to have potential applications under strict medical regulations (Miró et al., 1995).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Preliminary investigation of the anti‐colon cancer activity of cucurbitacin C from cucumber: A network pharmacological study and experimental validation

Liu,

Zhang,

Yang

et al. 2023

Food Frontiers

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Colon cancer (CC) is a prevalent malignant tumor of the gastrointestinal tract and ranks among the leading causes of death in cancer patients worldwide. Cucurbitacin, a group of tetracyclic triterpenoids widely found in Cucurbitaceae plants, exhibits diverse pharmacological activities. However, the pharmacological activity of cucurbitacin C (CuC), a cucurbitacin derivative exclusively present in cucumbers, remains unclear. To investigate CuC's action targets and potential targets for CC, we utilized a database to obtain relevant information. Additionally, we identified differentially expressed genes in CC patients from The Cancer Genome Atlas and discovered 64 crossover targets formed through the intersection of drug‐disease targets. Through the construction of a protein‐protein interaction network, we identified 20 central genes. Enrichment analysis revealed that the cross‐targets were significantly enriched in four signaling pathways, namely, the PI3K‐Akt, Ras, MAPK, and IL‐17 signaling pathways. Correlation and expression analysis of the enriched central genes led to the identification of 7 key targets, among which matrix metalloproteinases (MMP)‐1, MMP‐3, and MMP‐13 demonstrated a significant association with poor prognosis in patients. Furthermore, we validated the network pharmacology results with in vitro and in vivo experiments. CuC can effectively inhibit the proliferation and migration of HCT‐116. CuC also can suppress the colon tumor growth in vivo, while reducing the expression of placental growth factor, MMP‐1, MMP‐3, MMP‐9, and MMP‐13 both in vitro and in vivo, consistent with the predicted results. Together, our results demonstrated that CuC holds promise as a potential agent for CC treatment.

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“…Citron watermelon is the most drought and heat tolerant of the cucurbit crops [ 4 ]. The crop is also efficient at absorbing N [ 5 , 6 ]; and is tolerant to biotic stresses, including pathogenic diseases such as Fusarium wilt, gummy stem blight, bacterial fruit blotch, powdery mildew, viral diseases and root-knot nematodes [ 7 , 8 , 9 ]. Due to these desirable attributes, citron watermelon is presently being explored as a suitable rootstock for improving biotic and abiotic stress tolerance and fruit quality of grafted sweet watermelon [ 10 , 11 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Phenotypic Variability of Root System Architecture Traits for Drought Tolerance among Accessions of Citron Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus var. citroides (L.H. Bailey)

Mandizvo

Odindo

Mashilo

et al. 2022

Plants

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Citron watermelon (Citrullus lanatus var. citroides) is a drought-tolerant cucurbit crop widely grown in sub-Saharan Africa in arid and semi-arid environments. The species is a C3 xerophyte used for multiple purposes, including intercropping with maize, and has a deep taproot system. The deep taproot system plays a key role in the species’ adaptation to dry conditions. Understanding the root system development of this crop could be useful to identify traits for breeding water-use efficient and drought-tolerant varieties. This study compared the root system architecture of citron watermelon accessions under water-stress conditions. Nine selected and drought-tolerant citron watermelon accessions were grown under non-stress (NS) and water stress (WS) conditions using the root rhizotron procedure in a glasshouse. The following root system architecture (RSA) traits were measured: root system width (RSW), root system depth (RSD), convex hull area (CHA), total root length (TRL), root branch count (RBC), total root volume (TRV), leaf area (LA), leaf number (LN), first seminal root length (FSRL), seminal root angle (SRA), root dry mass (RDM), shoot dry mass (SDM), root–shoot mass ratio (RSM), root mass ratio (RMR), shoot mass ratio (SMR) and root tissue density (RTD). The data collected on RSA traits were subjected to an analysis of variance (ANOVA), correlation and principal component analyses. ANOVA revealed a significant (p < 0.05) accession × water stress interaction effect for studied RSA traits. Under WS, RDM exhibited significant and positive correlations with RSM (r = 0.65), RMR (r = 0.66), RSD (r = 0.66), TRL (r = 0.60), RBC (r = 0.72), FSRL (r = 0.73) and LN (r = 0.70). The principal component analysis revealed high loading scores for the following RSA traits: RSW (0.89), RSD (0.97), TRL (0.99), TRV (0.90), TRL (0.99), RMR (0.96) and RDM (0.76). In conclusion, the study has shown that the identified RSA traits could be useful in crop improvement programmes for citron watermelon genotypes with enhanced drought adaptation for improved yield performance under drought-prone environments.

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Cucurbitacin biosynthesis in cucurbit crops, their pharmaceutical value and agricultural application for management of biotic and abiotic stress: A review

Cited by 11 publications

References 98 publications

In Vitro Sprouted Plantlets of Citrullus colocynthis (L.) Schrad Shown to Possess Interesting Levels of Cucurbitacins and Other Bioactives against Pathogenic Fungi

In Vitro Sprouted Plantlets of Citrullus colocynthis (L.) Schrad Shown to Possess Interesting Levels of Cucurbitacins and Other Bioactives against Pathogenic Fungi

Preliminary investigation of the anti‐colon cancer activity of cucurbitacin C from cucumber: A network pharmacological study and experimental validation

Phenotypic Variability of Root System Architecture Traits for Drought Tolerance among Accessions of Citron Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus var. citroides (L.H. Bailey)

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