Chinese cucumber, also called Trichosanthes kirilowii, is a known medicinal plant, whose tuber, fruit, fruit peel, stem, leaf, and seed can be used medicinally. Since its fruits (Gua Lou) and seeds (Gua Lou Ren) have been covered in previous posts, now we focus specifically on its tuber called Tian Hua Fen in Pinyin, which, literally translated, means "sky pollen" because its ground powder is just as delicate and white as pollen. As you can see, it is something entirely unrelated. As a commonly used Chinese herb that can clear away heat, purge pathogenic fire, and generate fluids, today it is an essential herb in the treatment of diabetes since clinical practice confirms that it can lower the amount of sugar in the blood while effectively improving thirst, irritability, frequent urination, weight loss and other symptoms.

This is a climber, up to 10 meters in height. Tubers are cylindrical, fleshy, and rich in starch. Thick stems are branched, covered with white stretch pubescence, and with longitudinal edges and grooves. Leaves are alternate; petiole is 3 to 10cm in length; blade is papery, nearly round or nearly heart-shaped, and 5 to 20cm long and wide. It is dioecious; male raceme is solitary or adnate with a single flower, 10 to 20cm long, stout, puberulent, and with 5 to 8 terminal flowers that are with white corolla, barrel-shaped calyx, about 15cm stalk, obovate or broadly ovate small bracts, and connivent anthers; female flower is solitary, pubescent, and with about 7.5cm stalk; calyx is oblong, 2.5cm long, and in diameter of 1.2cm; ovary is oval, green, 2cm long, with 2cm style and 3 stigmas. Fruit is oval, flattened, 11-16mm long, 7-12mm wide, light brown, and with ridge almost at the edge. Bloom time is from May to August and fruiting is from August to October.

CHINESE CUCUMBER BENEFITS 
As a commonly used traditional Chinese herbal medicine, actually its medicinal uses can date back to Ben Cao Gang Mu (Compendium of Materia Medica), written by he famous physician Li Shizhen in Ming Dynasty (14th century). Then it is mainly used in the treatment of gynecological diseases. It becomes even more popular when the effective active ingredient called trichosanthin (TCS) was successfully extracted from its root by Shanghai Cell Research of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in the 70 this century. Besides, it is also full of nutrition and packed with health benefits.

Chinese Cucumber

1) Its tuber contains a certain amount of proteins. Trichosanthin is a protein that not only works for mid-trimester induced abortion, but also has anti-hydatidiform mole and anti-AIDS activities; protein Karasurin has a strong abortifacient capacity on pregnant mice; protein α-Momorcharin and β-Momorcharin can cause a miscarriage, lower the body’s normal immune response, and fight cancer. In addition, what are isolated from it also include protein α-Trichosanthin that is composed of 289 amino acids, cytotoxic protein Trichosanthin-ZG, polypeptide with trypsin-inhibiting activity, and the like;

2) Its tuber contains anti-cancer and immunocompetent polysaccharides, which consist of glucose, galactose, fructose, mannose, xylose, and a small amount of proteins. These carbohydrate compounds have significant immunomodulatory effects, enhance immune activity, and have significant anti-tumor and cytotoxic activity. What’s more, from the water extract of Trichosanthes roots 5 polysaccharides are isolated. They are called Trichosan A, B, C, D, E. and with hypoglycemic activity;

3) Its root contains a variety of enzymes, of which β-galactosidase is with the strongest activity, followed by the α-mannose glycosides;

4) Trichosanthes root contains a variety of amino acids, such as L-citrulline dihydrate, α-hydroxymethylserine, citrulline, alanine, valine, tyrosine, lysine and γ-aminobutyric acid;

5) Its root still contains palmitic acid, α-Spinasterol, saponins and a lot of starch.