ArticleBMC complementary and alternative medicine2019
Pharmacokinetics of cucurbitacin B from Trichosanthes cucumerina L. in rats.
Article in BMC complementary and alternative medicine, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 16 papers.
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Who cites it
16 citing papers in PubMed, 34 citations in OpenAlex.
- Cucurbitacin derivatives (B, IIa, IIb, and E): modulating gut dysbiosis and inflammatory pathways for multi-target therapy of ulcerative colitis.Inflammopharmacology · 2026Review
- Pharmacokinetic Profile of Extracts from the Chayote (Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Cucurbitacin B alleviates DSS-induced experimental colitis by targeting ZNF70 to suppress the NLRP3/STAT3 signaling axis.Inflammopharmacology · 2025Article
- Bitter Phytochemicals as Novel Candidates for Skin Disease Treatment.Current issues in molecular biology · 2023Review
- Phytochemicals Target Multiple Metabolic Pathways in Cancer.Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Review
- Review
- Cucurbitacins as Potent Chemo-Preventive Agents: Mechanistic Insight and Recent Trends.Biomolecules · 2022Review
- Pharmacokinetics and Biological Activity of Cucurbitacins.Pharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
- Cucurbitacin promotes hair growth in mice by inhibiting the expression of fibroblast growth factor 18.Annals of translational medicine · 2022Article
- The involvement of the noradrenergic system in the antinociceptive effect of cucurbitacin D on mice with paclitaxel-induced neuropathic pain.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2022Article
- Identification, Characterization and Function of Orphan Genes Among the Current Cucurbitaceae Genomes.Frontiers in plant science · 2022Article
- PLGA/β-TCP composite scaffold incorporating cucurbitacin B promotes bone regeneration by inducing angiogenesis.Journal of orthopaedic translation · 2021Article
- Natural Bioactive Compounds Targeting Epigenetic Pathways in Cancer: A Review on Alkaloids, Terpenoids, Quinones, and Isothiocyanates.Nutrients · 2021Review
- Use of cucurbitacins for lung cancer research and therapy.Cancer chemotherapy and pharmacology · 2021Review
- Role of Phytochemicals in Perturbation of Redox Homeostasis in Cancer.Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2021Review
- Targeting Cancer Metabolism and Current Anti-Cancer Drugs.Advances in experimental medicine and biology · 2021Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundCucurbitacin B is the major bioactive constituent in Trichosanthes cucumerina L. fruits, which the pharmacological properties have been studied for decades particularly an anti-tumor activity. The pharmacokinetic profile of this compound is still limited and investigation is needed for further phytopharmaceutical product development. This study aimed to investigate the pharmacokinetic profile of cucurbitacin B after administering the compound at different doses and routes to rats.
methodsMale Wistar rats (n = 6) were treated by cucurbitacin B extracted from Trichosanthes cucumerina L. The cucurbitacin B was administered at 0.1 mg/kg intravenously or by oral gavage at 2-4 mg/kg. Blood samples and internal organs were collected serially within 24 h after administration. Urine and feces were collected from time 0 to 48 h. The level of cucurbitacin B in biological samples was determined by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.
resultsThe absolute oral bioavailability of cucurbitacin B was approximately 10%. The maximum concentration in plasma after normalization by dose ranged from 4.85-7.81 μg/L and the time to reach maximum value was approximately within 30 min after oral dosing. The level of cucurbitacin B in plasma increased proportionally to the given dose. After intravenous administration, cucurbitacin B had a large volume of distribution of about 51.65 L/kg and exhibited a high tissue to plasma concentration ratio, approximately 60 to 280-fold in several organs. Negligible amount of unchanged cucurbitacin B could be detected in urine and feces and accounted less than 1% of administered dose.
conclusionCucurbitacin B had low oral bioavailability, but could be distributed extensively into internal organs with a high volume of distribution and tissue to plasma ratio. Only negligible amounts of unchanged cucurbitacin B were excreted via urine and feces suggesting that the compound might be biotransformed before undergoing an excretion. Further studies of the metabolic pathway and tissue uptake mechanism are required to strategize the future development of cucurbitacin B into clinical studies.
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