Harnessing Cucurbitaceae Seed Extracts for Natural Suppression of Uric Acid and Calcium Urate Crystallization: An Invitro Biocrystallization Analysis

Abstract

Background: Uric acid (UA) and Calcium Urate (CaU) crystals are important biominerals associated with gout, urolithiasis and nephropathy related to hyperuricemia.  Despite their clinical significance, plant based strategies for inhibiting these crystals are still underexplored, particularly with regard to extracts form Cucurbitaceae seeds.

Method: This present study investigates the invitro growth and inhibition of UA and CaU crystals using aqueous seed extracts from three Cucurbitaceae species: Cucumis sativus (Cucumber), Cucurbita pepo (Pumpkin) and Momordica charantia (bitter gourd). Phytochemical screening was performed to characterize the secondary metabolite profiles of all three extracts. For the inhibition study, the crystals were grown using the single diffusion silica gel growth method. The extracts were prepared at various concentrations of 0%, 25%, 50%, 75% and 100%. The crystals were harvested after a period of 21 days. The length of the crystals were measured using ImageJ software, while the mass was recorded gravimetrically.

Results: All extracts were found to be rich in flavonoids, saponins, phenolics, tannins and terpenoids.  For uric acid crystals, M. Charantia exhibited the greatest reduction in length (80%) and mass (79.4%) at 100% concentration, while C. sativus also achieve an 80% reduction in length. M. Charantia showed a length reduction of 71.43% and a mass reduction of 86.4% marking the highest results among all tested extracts.

Conclusions: Extracts from Cucurbitaceae seeds especially from Momordica charantia demonstrate significant anticrystallization activity depend on the concentration, likely due to their rich phytochemical content.  These findings support the ethnopharmacological relevance of these seeds in managing urate related disorders and suggest their potential as promising for further pharmacological development.