CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION    4       

THE BIBLICAL VERSE    7       

CHARACTERISTICS    7       

CULTIVATION HISTORY           

CUCUMBER FRUIT           

TYPES           

VARIETIES           

NUTRITION, AROMA, AND TASTE           

PRODUCTION           

ACCEPTANCE           

HEALTH EFFECTS    17       

SIDE EFFECTS    23       

ALLERGY           

VARIOUS INFECTIONS           

CONTAMINATION           

SEA CUCUMBERS    35       

CHARACTERISTICS           

OVERVIEW           

RELATION TO HUMANS           

MEDICINE           

COMMERCIAL HARVEST           

STUCTURE AND BIOLOGICAL ACTIVITY           

MICROBIAL CONTAMINATION           

HEALTH BENEFITS    52       

SUMMARY    79     

INTRODUCTION

Potter & Steinmetz (1) mentioned that the practice of medicine- both past and present - often involves the prescription of specific foods (almost always plants) or their potent derivatives, to treat a wide spectrum of illnesses. Foods that have been ascribed healing properties include the Cruciferae, the allium family, celery, cucumber, endive, parsley, radish, and legumes. Review of the epidemiological data, including both cohort and case-control studies, of all cancer sites strongly suggests that plant foods also have preventive potential and that consumption of the following groups and types of vegetables and fruits is lower in those who subsequently develop cancer: raw and fresh vegetables, leafy green vegetables, Cruciferae, carrots, broccoli, cabbage, lettuce, and raw and fresh fruit (including tomatoes and citrus fruit). Other data suggest that foods high in phytoestrogens, particularly soy (which contains isoflavones), or high in precursor compounds that can be metabolized by gut bacteria into active agents, particularly some grains and vegetables with woody stems (which contain precursors to lignans), are plausibly associated with a lower risk of sex-hormone-related cancers. The human evidence for these latter associations is not strong. There are many biologically plausible reasons why consumption of plant foods might slow or prevent the appearance of cancer. These include the presence in plant foods of such potentially anticarcinogenic substances as carotenoids, vitamin C, vitamin E, selenium, dietary fiber (and its components), dithiolthiones, isothiocyanates, indoles, phenols, protease inhibitors, allium compounds, plant sterols, and limonene.   Phytoestrogens are also derived from some vegetables and berries as well as grains and seeds. Most of the data for the observations on the anticarcinogenic potential of all of these compounds have come from animal and in vitro studies. At almost every one of the stages of the cancer process, identified phytochemicals are known to be able to alter the likelihood of carcinogenesis - occasionally in a way that enhances risk but usually in a favorable direction. For example, glucosinolates and indoles, thiocyanates and isothiocyanates, phenols, and coumarins can induce a multiplicity of phase II (solubilizing and usually inactivating) enzymes; ascorbate and phenols block the formation of carcinogens such as nitrosamines; flavonoids and carotenoids act as antioxidants, essentially disabling the carcinogenic potential of specific compounds; lipid-soluble compounds such as carotenoids and sterols may alter membrane structure or integrity; some sulphur-containing compounds suppress DNA and protein synthesis; carotenoids can suppress DNA synthesis and enhance differentiation; and phytoestrogens compete with estradiol for estrogen receptors in a way that is generally antiproliferative. Consumption of diets low in plant foods results in a reduced intake of a wide variety of those substances that can plausibly lower cancer risk. In the presence of a diet and lifestyle high in potential carcinogens (whether derived from fungal contamination, cooking, or tobacco) or high in promoters (such as salt and alcohol), overall risk of cancer at many epithelial

sites is elevated. Plant foods appear to exert a general risk-lowering effect; the patterns of exposure to cancer initiators and promoters and of genetic susceptibility may determine the variations in the site- specific risks of cancer seen across populations (1).

Nishanthan & al. (2) stated that sea cucumbers are considered healthy and high in nutritive value. Conversely however, limited consumption of sea cucumbers has been reported in many parts of the world. This study was done to produce a ready-to-prepare soup mix incorporating the sea cucumber aiming to popularize the sea cucumber consumption. The highly abundant low-value Bohadschia vitiensis in the coastal waters of Sri Lanka was selected to prepare this soup mix. Fresh B. vitiensis samples (n=250) were collected from major sea cucumber landing sites of the northwest coast. Out of the seven compositions prepared initially, three compositions; 20%, 40% and 60% were selected. The best composition among these was selected through a sensory test performed using a semi-trained panel (n=30) at the University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Sri Lanka. The initial chemical and microbial qualities of the selected soup mix were analyzed, and the best packaging material was selected. Results showed that the soup mix with 40% sea cucumber flour was the best composition as it reported significantly higher sensory scores than the other two mixes (p ≤ 0.05, Friedman). This soup mix exhibited high protein (21.43 ± 1.21%), low fat (4.98 ± 0.23%) and its oxygen radical absorbance capacity was 1.04 ± 0.13 mg Trolox equivalents/g. Coliforms and Staphylococcus aureus colonies were absent in the soup mix. The total plate count (1.9 × 102 CFU/g), yeast and mold count (0.7 × 102 CFU/g) and the heavy metal contents were within the safe limit for human consumption. The Polyester-Aluminum-PE was selected as the best packaging material which ensured 6 weeks storage time at room temperature (2).

Roe & al. (3) mentioned that although serving a greater variety of food increases intake, this effect has not been well studied as a strategy to encourage consumption of vegetables and fruit in preschool children. This study examined whether providing a variety of familiar vegetables or fruit to preschool children as a snack would lead to increased selection and intake. In a crossover design, 61 children (aged 3-5 y) ate a snack in their childcare facility on 8 afternoons. At 4 snack times, the children were offered vegetables: either a single type (cucumber, sweet pepper, or tomato) or a variety of all 3 types. At 4 other snack times, the children were offered fruit (apple, peach, pineapple, or all 3 types). Uniform-sized pieces were served family style, and children selected and ate as much as they desired. Offering a variety of vegetables or fruit increased the likelihood of selection (p<0.0001); children chose some pieces in 94% of snacks with variety and in 70% of snacks without variety. Serving a variety also increased consumption of both vegetables and fruit (p<0.0002); the mean (±SEM) increase was 31 ± 5 g, about one-sixth the recommended daily amount. Independent of the variety effect, children were less likely to select vegetables than fruit (p<0.0001), and the mean intake was substantially less for vegetables than for fruit (22 ± 1 compared with 84 ± 3 g). The data show that providing a

variety of vegetables and fruit as a snack led to increased consumption of both food types in a childcare facility. Serving a variety of vegetables or fruit as a snack could help preschool children meet recommended intakes (3).

Burza & al. (4) describe two novel Agrobacterium tumefaciens- based methods of cucumber transformation. The first involves direct regeneration from leaf microexplants selected on kanamycin- containing medium. The second involves regeneration from a long- term established embryogenic suspension culture emitting green autofluorescence (GAF) and selection on medium containing hygromycin. In the latter method, GAF was used as a reporter, thereby allowing a simple and reliable identification of transgenic cells with a high regeneration capacity. (No false positives were observed.) The transformation efficiency in the leaf microexplants fluctuated from 0.8 to 6.5% of the primary explants, whereas in the embryogenic suspension-cultured cells it varied from 6.4 to 17.9% of the aggregates. In the GAF method, the step involving the elimination of the Agrobacterium cells by antibiotics could be omitted; however, this reduced the transformation efficiency to about 3%.   The time required from inoculation to regenerated plant in the greenhouse was the same for both methods, but the GAF method required more preinoculation time than the leaf microexplant method (4).

References

Potter JD, Steinmetz K. Vegetables, fruit and phytoestrogens as preventive agents. IARC Sci Publ.  1996;(139):61-90.

Nishanthan G, Wickramasinghe I, Navaratne SB, Dissanayake DCT. Ready-to-prepare soup mix enriched with sea cucumbers: production, sensory attributes and nutritional composition. J Food Sci Technol. 2021;58(6):2078-88.

Roe LS, Meengs JS, Birch LL, Rolls BJ. Serving a variety of vegetables and fruit as a snack increased intake in preschool children. Am J Clin Nutr. 2013;98(3):693-9.

Burza W, Zuzga S, Yin Z, Malepszy S. Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.). Methods Mol Biol.  2006;343:427-38.

Thus, foods that have been ascribed healing properties include the Cruciferae, the allium family, celery, cucumber, endive, parsley, radish, and legumes.

What are the characteristics of the cucumbers? What are the health effects? What are the side effects? Can the cucumbers be contaminated?

What are the characteristics of the sea cucumbers? What are the biological structure and biological activity? What are the health benefits?

In this research, the Biblical verse concerning the cucumbers is described. Therefore, this research deals with various medical aspects of the cucumbers.