New Delhi, Nov 28 (ANI) : A new study has found that the compounds, which are responsible for the bitter taste in cucumbers, may be able to treat cancer and diabetes. According to the researchers of University of California the bitter flavor in wild cucurbits-the family that includes cucumber, pumpkin, melon, watermelon and squash-is due to compounds called cucurbitacins.The fruit and leaves of wild cucurbits have been used in Indian and Chinese medicine for thousands of years, as emetics and purgatives and to treat liver disease. More recently, researchers have shown that cucurbitacins could kill or suppress growth of cancer cells.
