1. Caigua (Cyclanthera pedata (L.) Schrader) Classification

Division: Angiospermae
Class: Dicotyledonae
Order: Cucurbitales
Family: Cucurbitaceae
Genus: Cyclanthera
Species: Cyclanthera pedata (L.) Schrader
Common names: “achocha”, “caigua”, “caygua”, "wild cucumber", “achoccha”, "achokcha", “cayhua”, “caihua”, “achojcha”, “quishiu”.

2. Caigua Botanical Description

Monoecious, climbing, annual, with many branches, up to 5 m long. Leaves palmately divided, with 5 to 6 elliptic leaflets or lobes, margins dentate.

Flowers unisexual; staminate (male) flowers in groups of 10 to 20; pistillate flowers (female) flowers solitary and sesile.

Fruit an elliptic or oblong berry, flattened, hollow, with a curved base; 10 to 20 cm long and 5 to 8 cm wide; the surface is irregular, with longitudinal striations and soft spines; its color varies from dark to light green; the central cavity with parietal placentation (so the seeds are attached to the ovary wall); mesocarp suculent, de 3-4 mm thick; endocarp white and spongy. Seeds square, black, and rugose.

3. Caigua Origin and Distribution

Probably native to Mexico or Bolivia. Cyclanthera pedata grows in warm and humid climates and is cultivated from Colombia to Peru. In Peru, it grows in the Coast, Highlands and the High Jungle of up to 2,000 meters above sea level.

4. Caigua Uses

Parts Used

Fruit, seeds and roots.

Properties

Decreases hypercholesterolemia. Hypolipemic, hypoglycemiant, and diuretic.

Fruit: reduction of cholesterol levels (hypercholesterolemia), triglyceridemia, obesity, diuretic and angina. Useful in diabetes treatment.

Caigua Supplements

Seeds: vermifuge and reduce high blood pressure - hypertension.

Roots: Teeth cleansing. Used for earache in juice form.

6. Caigua Phytochemicals

Ripe fruit: Phenols, pectin, galacturonic acid, picrin, lipoproteins, flavonoids, cumarins, mucilages, alkaloids, lipids, tannins, terpenes, resin, carbohydrates, steroidal compound, thiamine, sitosterol, vitamins, minerals, dihydroxytryptamine (dihydrostigmasterol), 3 beta-d-glycoside.

Unripe fruit: Luteolin, stigmadicin, stigmasterol, diosgenin (base of the production of sexual hormones), antiinflammatories, and anabolizers.

6. Caigua Dosage and Contraindications

Pharmacological Information

Lyophilized extract of Cyclanthera pedata fruit administered orally to albino mice at 7-g/kg b.w. doses increased analgesic activity by 11,62%.

Rabbits fed on atomized extract of Cyclanthera pedata at 400-mg/kg b.w. during 8 weeks decreased total cholesterol, HDL, and LDL levels but not that of triglycerides.

Cyclanthera may revert dyslipidemia in post-menopause women, according to a study of the Institute of High-Altitude Medicine of Cayetano Heredia University. The results showed that the ingestion of six capsules/day before breakfast caused a significant reduction of LDL-cholesterol and increase of HDL-cholesterol.

Toxicological Information

Albino mice fed on Cyclanthera pedata fruit at the following doses: 0.1, 0.2, 0.4, 1.2 g/kg b.w. showed no collateral effects or deaths. LD50 has not been established.

Contraindications

Patients suffering from active liver disease or with unexplained persistent elevation of serum transaminases should not take Cyclanthera pedata.

Avoid simultaneous treatment with hypoglycemics and hypotensors, with wich it could develop a synergetic effect. It may cause transitory slight side effects, like headaches, nausea, and blurred vision. In long term therapy, it is recommended to check blood profile and to test liver function.

Contraindicated for women who are pregnant or in nursing mothers, since controlled studies are not yet available.

Interactions with Other Products

No information on interactions with other pharmaceuticals has been found. Caution should be exercised when taken along with hypoglycemiants or hypotensors, with which it may be act synergistically.

Adverse Reactions

It is well tolerated, and may cause minor collateral, transient effects including headaches, nauseas, and blurry sight.

Precautions

In lengthy treatments, the hematologic profile should be monitored and the hepatic function tested. Not to be taken by pregnant or lactating women since controlled studies are not yet available. If any adverse reactions are observed, stop consumption immediately.

7. Caigua Bibliography and References

1. Plantas Medicinales - El dioscorides renovado PIO FONT QUER (1995)
2. Monografía de Plantas Medicinales N. 3 Caigua – I.P.S Instituto De Medicina Tradicional 1998
3. An Integrated System of Classification of Flowering Plants Arthur Cronquist (1981)
4. Manual de las Malezas de la Costa Norperuana - Abundio Sagástegui (19
5. Flora de las Reservas Biológicas de Iquitos Perú - Rodolfo Vásquez M. (1997)
6. Flowering Plants of the World Oxford University Press 1993
7. Plantas Medicinales Nativas del Perú - Concejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (1993)
8. Vocabulario de los Nombres Vulgares de la Flora Peruana - J. Soukup SDB ( 1970)
9. Botiquín Verde Medicina Natural - Ignacio Lombardi UNAM (1998)
10. Estudios de los Efectos de la Caigua Deshidratada Sobre el Perfil -Lípido de Adultos - Instituto de Investigaciones de la Altura – Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia (1994)
11. Perfil Lipídico en Mujeres Post Menopáusicas- Efectos de la Caigua. U. P Cayetano Heredia (1994