Momordicine Explained

A momordicine is any of several compounds found in the bitter melon vine, Momordica charantia. They are glycosides of cucurbitane derivatives.^[1] They include

• Momordicine II^[1]
• Momordicine IV, 7-O-D-glucopyranosyl-3,23-dihydroxycucurbita-5,24-dien-19-al^[1]

Momordicine II and IV can be extracted from the leaves of M. charantia by methanol. They have been found to deter egg-laying of the leaf mining fly (Liriomyza trifolii) at a combined concentration of 96 μg/cm².^[1]

See also

• Momordicin (disambiguation)

Notes and References

1. Daniel Bisrat Mekuria, Takehiro Kashiwagi, Shin-ichi Tebayashi, and Chul-Sa Kim (2006)"Cucurbitane Glucosides from Momordica charantia Leaves as Oviposition Deterrents to the Leafminer, Liriomyza trifolii". Z. Naturforsch., volume 61c, pages 81–86