Momordica charantia
(Bitter melon)

Therapeutic Actions:

• Antibiotic
• Antitumor activity - due to the constituents lutein and lycopene
• Antiviral
• Aphrodisiac
• Increases tissue uptake of glucose due to charantin
• Decreases cGMP:cAMP ratio
• Immunosuppressive, modulating activity of both T and B lymphocytes and suppressing macrophage activity
  
• Inhibits corticotropin-induced lipolysis creating an insulin-sparing action
• Insulinomimetic
• Hypotensive
• Laxative
• Lowers blood glucose
• Stimulates lipogenesis
• Stomachic
• Vermifuge

Clinical Indications:

• Diabetes mellitus
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)
• Graft rejections
• Organ transplant rejections

Contraindications:

• Pregnancy - due to the abortifacient effect in rat studies

Drug/Nutrient Interaction:

• Diabetic individuals must monitor insulin - due to the hypoglycemic effect
• May interact with chlorpropamide and cause an additive hypoglycemia effect

Chemical Constituents:

• 5-Alpha stigmasta-7,25-Dien-3-betalOL
• 5-Hydroxytryptamine
• Alkaloids
• Alpha and beta momorcharin - possess immunosuppressive activities
• Alpha-elaneostearic acid
• Ascorbigen
• Beta-sitosterol-d-glucoside
• Charantin
• Citrulline
• Cryptoxanthin
• Elasterol
• Flavochrome
• Fluoride
• Gaba
• Galacturonic acid
• Lanosterol
• Lutein
• Lycopene
• Momordicin
• Momordicoside-F-1
• Momordicoside-F-2
• Momordicoside-G
• Momordicoside-I
• Mutachrome
• Oxalate
• Oxalic acid
• Pipecolic acid
• Polypeptide-p
• Rubixanthin
• Stigmasta-5,25-dien-3-beta-ol
• Sugars
• Zeaxanthin
• Zeinoxanthin

Toxicity:

• No known toxicity - see Contraindications and Drug/Nutrient Interactions

Copyright 1998 - 2008 by L. Vicky Crouse, ND and James S. Reiley, ND. All rights reserved (ISSN 1527-0661).