''Trichosanthes'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

tropical The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the equator, where the sun may shine directly overhead. This contrasts with the temperate or polar regions of Earth, where the Sun can never be directly overhead. This is because of Earth's ax ...

and

subtropical The subtropical zones or subtropics are geographical zone, geographical and Köppen climate classification, climate zones immediately to the Northern Hemisphere, north and Southern Hemisphere, south of the tropics. Geographically part of the Ge ...

vine A vine is any plant with a growth habit of trailing or scandent (that is, climbing) stems, lianas, or runners. The word ''vine'' can also refer to such stems or runners themselves, for instance, when used in wicker work.Jackson; Benjamin; Da ...

s. They belong to the cucumber

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

(

Cucurbitaceae The Cucurbitaceae (), also called cucurbits or the gourd family, are a plant family (biology), family consisting of about 965 species in 101 genera.

), and are closely related to '' Gymnopetalum''. '' Hodgsonia'', formerly included here, is usually considered a well-distinct genus nowadays. The

shoot Shoot most commonly refers to: * Shoot (botany), an immature plant or portion of a plant * Shooting, the firing of projectile weapons * Photo shoot, a photography session; an event wherein a photographer takes photographs Shoot may also refer t ...

tendril In botany, a tendril is a specialized Plant stem, stem, leaf or Petiole (botany), petiole with a thread-like shape used by climbing plants for support and attachment, as well as cellular invasion by parasitic plants such as ''Cuscuta''. There ar ...

s, and

leaves A leaf (: leaves) is a principal appendage of the stem of a vascular plant, usually borne laterally above ground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, stem, ...

of some or possibly all species may be eaten as greens, and at least two species ( serpent gourd, ''T. cucumerina'', and pointed gourd, ''T. dioica'') are grown commercially for their fleshy

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants (angiosperms) that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which angiosperms disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particular have long propaga ...

s used as

vegetable Vegetables are edible parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. This original meaning is still commonly used, and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including edible flower, flo ...

s, most popular in

South Asia South Asia is the southern Subregion#Asia, subregion of Asia that is defined in both geographical and Ethnicity, ethnic-Culture, cultural terms. South Asia, with a population of 2.04 billion, contains a quarter (25%) of the world's populatio ...

and

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...

. At least two species ('' T. kirilowii'' and '' T. rosthornii'') are grown for use in

traditional Chinese medicine Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an alternative medicine, alternative medical practice drawn from traditional medicine in China. A large share of its claims are pseudoscientific, with the majority of treatments having no robust evidence ...

, where they are called the name ''gualou'' (). ''Trichosanthes'' is also known as a medicinal as well as poisonous plant in India. The herb has shown an ability to reduce chest congestion by breaking down phlegm and aiding in its removal from the lungs.

Selected species

Trichosanthes napoiensis and Trichosanthes pedata habit and seeds

* '' Trichosanthes baviensis'' Gagnepain * '' Trichosanthes cochinchinensis'' (Lour) M. Roem. * '' Trichosanthes cucumerina'' – Serpent gourd, Padwal; ''dhunduli'' (Assamese); ''chichinga/chichinge'' (Bengali); ''paduvalakaayi'' (Kannada); ''padavalanga'' (Malayalam); ''purla'' (Sambalpuri); ''pathola'' (Sinhala); ''Pudol'', ''Kurattai'' OR ''Sauri'' (Tamil); ''potlakaaya'' (Telugu) ** ''Trichosanthes cucumerina'' var. ''anguina'' – Snake gourd * ''

Trichosanthes dioica ''Trichosanthes dioica'', also known as pointed gourd, is a tropical perennial cucurbit plant with its origin in the Indian subcontinent. The plant propagated vegetatively and grows with training on a support system (e.g., trellis) as pencil-thic ...

'' – Pointed gourd, (Hindi), / (eastern India & Northeastern Andhra) * '' Trichosanthes dunniana'' Levl. * '' Trichosanthes fissibracteata'' C.Y.Wu ex C.Y.Cheng & Yueh * '' Trichosanthes globosa'' Blume * '' Trichosanthes homophylla'' Hayata * '' Trichosanthes kerrii'' Craib * '' Trichosanthes kinabaluensis'' Rugayah * '' Trichosanthes kirilowii'' – ''"gualou"'' (China) (= ''T. japonica'') * '' Trichosanthes laceribractea'' Hayata * '' Trichosanthes lepiniana'' (Nuad.) Cogn. * '' Trichosanthes montana'' Rugayah * '' Trichosanthes pedata'' Merr. & Chun * '' Trichosanthes pendula'' Rugayah * '' Trichosanthes pilosa'' (Ser.) Maxim in Franch. & Sav. - Japanese snake gourd; ''karasuuri ��瓜' (Japanese) * '' Trichosanthes pentaphylla'' F.Muell. ex Benth. * '' Trichosanthes postarii'' W.J.de Wilde & Duyfjes * '' Trichosanthes quinquangulata'' A.Gray * '' Trichosanthes reticulinervis'' C.Y.Wu ex S.K.Chen * '' Trichosanthes rosthornii'' Harms – ''"gualou"'' (China) (= ''T. uniflora'') * '' Trichosanthes rubiflos'' Thorel ex Cayla * '' Trichosanthes rugatisemina'' C.Y.Cheng & Yueh * '' Trichosanthes scabra'' Lour. * '' Trichosanthes schlechteri'' Cogn. ex Harms * '' Trichosanthes sepilokensis'' Rugayah * '' Trichosanthes sericeifolia'' C.Y.Cheng & Yueh * '' Trichosanthes subrosea'' C.Y.Cheng & Yueh * '' Trichosanthes subvelutina'' F.Muell. ex Cogn. * ''

Trichosanthes tricuspidata ''Trichosanthes tricuspidata'' is a climbing plant in the family Cucurbitaceae. Subspecies The following subspecies are listed in the Catalogue of Life: * ''T. t. asperifolia'' * ''T. t. seramensis'' * ''T. t. siberutensis'' * ''T. t. javanica ...

'' Lour. (= ''T. bracteata, T. palmata'') * '' Trichosanthes truncata'' C.B.Clarke * '' Trichosanthes villosa'' Blume – ''"baduyut"'' (Sundanese) * '' Trichosanthes wallichiana'' (Ser.) Wight * '' Trichosanthes wawraei'' (Ser.) Xianyu.W In addition, several

hybrid Hybrid may refer to: Science * Hybrid (biology), an offspring resulting from cross-breeding ** Hybrid grape, grape varieties produced by cross-breeding two ''Vitis'' species ** Hybridity, the property of a hybrid plant which is a union of two diff ...

s are known in this genus. Formerly placed in ''Trichosanthes'' were for example '' Kedrostis foetidissima'' and '' Linnaeosicyos amara''. File:Trichosanthes fruit at Ayyankave by Vijayanrajapuram 02.jpg File:Trichosanthes fruit at Ayyankave by Vijayanrajapuram 11.jpg File:Trichosanthes fruit at Ayyankave by Vijayanrajapuram 09.jpg File:Trichosanthes fruit at Ayyankave by Vijayanrajapuram 13.jpg File:Trichosanthes fruit at Ayyankave by Vijayanrajapuram 12.jpg File:Trichosanthes fruit at Ayyankave by Vijayanrajapuram 06.jpg

References

External links

*
Multilingual taxonomic information from the University of Melbourne

ITIS report
{{Authority control Cucurbitaceae genera Medicinal plants Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Plants described in 1753