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Malays. Appl. Biol. (2019) 48(4): 1–13
BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS IN Cucumis melo L. AND
ITS BENEFICIAL HEALTH EFFECTS: A SCOPING REVIEW
ONG YING QIAN1, SAKINAH HARITH1*, MOHD RAZIF SHAHRIL1 and
NORSHAZILA SHAHIDAN2
1School of Nutrition and Dietetics, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin,
Gong Badak Campus, 21300 Kuala Nerus, Terengganu, Malaysia
2School of Food Industry, Faculty of Bioresources and Food Industry, Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin,
Besut Campus, 22200 Besut, Terengganu, Malaysia
*E-mail: sakinahharith@unisza.edu.my
Accepted 14 October 2019, Published online 21 December 2019
ABSTRACT
Cucumis melo L. possesses numerous medicinal and nutritive functions due to the rich sources of biological active compounds.
However, Cucumis melo L. processing generate by-products that threaten the environment. This study aims to explore the
bioactive compounds present in different melon parts and the fruit’s beneficial health effects. A methodological framework
proposed by Arksey and O’Malley was used to conduct the scoping review. An electronic database search for English
academic articles was conducted using PubMed, Scopus and ScienceDirect encompassing years between 1999 and 2019. All
types of studies, excluding systematic review or review papers were eligible for inclusion. Out of 602 studies identified, a
total of 18 studies were included. Both peels and seeds were rich in phenolic compounds. The seed oil contained rich sources
of tocopherols, while β-carotene and vitamin C were found in the flesh. Next, the main beneficial health effects included
antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-ulcer, anti-angiogenic, anti-diabetic, anti-bacterial and anti-hypothyroidism activities, which
were attributable to the presence of bioactive compounds. In summary, Cucumis melo L., particularly its seeds and peels
exhibited various health benefits. This was indicative of the potential of incorporating these by-products into various food
and nutraceutical applications to create novel functional food or dietary supplements.
Key words: Bioactive compounds, Cucumis melo L., health
INTRODUCTION
Melon, which is also known as Cucumis melo L.,
belongs to the Cucurbitaceae family that is inclusive
of several fruit species, such as watermelon
(Citrullus lanatus L.); squash (Cucurbita maxima
L.); cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.); and cantaloupe
(Cucumis melo L.) (Ismail et al., 2010; Ritschel et
al., 2004). Melon is one of the most widely cultivated
and consumed fruits worldwide. It is the main plant
of this particular family (Gill et al., 2011) and grows
well in all tropical and subtropical regions in the
world, such as Europe, Asia and Africa (Mallek-
Ayadi et al., 2018), with preference for hot weather
(Milind & Kulwant, 2011). Cucumis melo L. is
comprised of various fruit groups, which include
orange flesh cantaloupes, green flesh honeydew, and
mixed melons (Ibrahim & El-Masry, 2016). Various
studies have reported that Cucumis melo L. is a
delicious and juicy fruit offering numerous
medicinal and nutritive functions (Milind &
Kulwant, 2011; Vishwakarma et al., 2017). It
contains polyphenols, organic acids, lignans and
other polar compounds that are beneficial to human
health (Rodríguez-Pérez et al., 2013).
The processing of melon can generate a huge
amount of waste materials and by-products, such as
its seeds and skin (Mallek-Ayadi et al., 2016). These
residues can threaten the environment. Therefore,
the environmental view underlines that it is vital for
these generated by-products to be re-used in the food
or nutraceutical industry for waste production
reduction and environmental protection (Ibrahim
& El-Masry, 2016). These wastes contain rich
sources of biological active compounds, such as
polyphenols, vitamins, enzymes, and dietary fibers
(Sagar et al., 2018). Hence, it is of great interest as
there is an increased demand for natural compound
2BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS IN Cucumis melo L. AND ITS BENEFICIAL HEALTH EFFECTS
beneficial towards human health (Silva et al., 2018).
Thus, the use of such waste to produce various
functional ingredients in food products or
supplements is an initial step towards sustainable
development. This scoping review aims to examine
the bioactive compounds obtained from the
different parts of Cucumis melo L. and its beneficial
health effects.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
The present study was designed as a scoping review
in identifying the bioactive compounds of Cucumis
melo L. and its beneficial health effects. The five-
stage methodological framework outlined by Arksey
and O’Malley (2005) was used as a guideline for the
scoping review, which consisted of: (1) identifying
the research questions; (2) identifying relevant
studies; (3) selecting studies; (4) charting the data;
and (5) collating, summarizing and reporting the
results. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic
Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) flow diagram
illustrates the flow of the process from article search
to its final selection as shown in Figure 1 (Moher et
al., 2009).
Identifying the research questions
The review questions were: (1) what are the
bioactive compounds present in the different parts
of Cucumis melo L.? and (2) what are the beneficial
health effects of Cucumis melo L.?
Identifying relevant studies
Academic journals (in English) published from
year 1999 to 2019 were identified by conducting
electronic database search using PubMed, Scopus,
and ScienceDirect. All types of studies, excluding
systematic reviews or review papers were included
in the search. Titles, abstracts and keywords were
examined independently for their eligibility by the
researchers. A total of 18 studies were included in
this review out of 602 studies identified through the
electronic databases. The key search terms used to
search the articles are displayed in Table 1.
Selecting studies
Identified studies were eligible for inclusion in
this review if they met the following inclusion
criteria: (1) fruits involved were of cantaloupe,
Cucumis melo L., or melon; (2) reported only
single data on the concentration of each bioactive
Table 1. Key search terms in the scoping review
• Cantaloupe AND Health
•
Cucumis melo
L. AND Health
• Melon AND Health
• Cantaloupe AND Bioactive compounds
•
Cucumis melo
L. AND Bioactive compounds
• Melon AND Bioactive compounds
• Cantaloupe AND Biological activity
•
Cucumis melo
L
.
AND Biological activity
• Melon AND Biological activity
Fig. 1. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) flow
diagram of study selection.
BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS IN Cucumis melo L. AND ITS BENEFICIAL HEALTH EFFECTS 3
compounds; and (3) evaluated the beneficial health
effects of Cucumis melo L.
Charting the data
The data presented according to author(s), year
of publication, country, bioactive compounds,
amount, and health benefits.
Collating, summarizing and reporting the results
The findings of the review on the bioactive
compounds in Cucumis melo L. and its beneficial
health effects were presented accordingly.
RESULTS
Study characteristics
As per Table 2, 11 studies investigated the
Cucumis melo L. seeds, three studies examined
the Cucumis melo L. peels, one study explored the
Cucumis melo L. flesh, while three studies evaluated
the Cucumis melo L. peel, seeds and flesh
collectively. Five studies were conducted in India
(Arora et al., 2011; Gill et al., 2011; Mehra et al.,
2015; Parmar & Kar, 2009; Sood et al., 2011), three
in Tunisia (Mallek-Ayadi et al., 2016; Mallek-Ayadi
et al., 2017; Mallek-Ayadi et al., 2018) and two in
Malaysia (Ismail et al., 2010; Norrizah et al., 2012),
China (Azhari et al., 2014; Siddeeg & Alsir, 2014)
and Egypt (Al-Sayed & Ahmed, 2013; Ibrahim &
El-Masry, 2016) respectively. Only one study was
undertaken in the United States of America (USA)
(Laur & Tian, 2011), South Korea (Chen & Kang,
2013), Bulgaria (Petkova & Antova, 2015), and Iran
(Rasouli et al., 2017) respectively.
Bioactive compounds in Cucumis melo L. peel
Mallek-Ayadi et al. (2016) reported that 18
individual phenolic compounds were identified in
Cucumis melo L. (maazoun cultivar) peel extract
using high-performance liquid chromatography
(HPLC). Among them, nine classes of the phenolic
compounds were recognized, namely hydroxy-
benzoic acids, phenylethanoid, phenolic alcohol,
hydroxycinnamic acids, flavones, flavanone
glycosides, secoiridoids, benzeneacetic acid, and
lignan. 3-hydroxybenzoic acid constituted the major
phenolic compounds with 33.45±0.37 mg/100g,
followed by apigenin-7-glycoside (29.34±0.17 mg/
100g), isovanillic acid (23.70±0.04 mg/100g),
m-coumaric acid (19.91±0.37 mg/100g), oleuropein
(18.88±0.29 mg/100g), and luteolin-7-glycoside
(16.51±0.15 mg/100g). Besides, notable amounts
of flavone (13.51±0.32 mg/100g), gallic acid
(12.07±0.12 mg/100g), naringenin (11.58±0.11 mg/
100g), and tyrosol (11.35±0.03 mg/100g) were also
present in the melon peel extract.
Next, HPLC analysis on Cucumis melo L. var.
cantalupensis peel extract revealed the four
phenolic compounds of 4-hydroxybenzoic acid
(326.2 µg/g dry weight), vanillin (197.4 µg/g dry
weight), coumaric acid (81.1 µg/g dry weight), and
chlorogenic acid (65.9 µg/g dry weight) (Ibrahim
& El-Masry, 2016). Another study investigated the
phenolic compounds present in sharlyn melon peel
powders, whereby four phenolic compounds were
detected: 4-hydroxybenzoic acid (958.3 µg/g dry
weight), vanillin (851.8 µg/g dry weight), coumaric
acid (8.8 lg/g dry weight), and chlorogenic acid
(66.2 µg/g dry weight) (Al-Sayed & Ahmed, 2013).
Bioactive compounds in Cucumis melo L. seed
A total of 15 phenolic compounds were
identified in Cucumis melo L. (maazoun cultivar)
seed extract in which phenolic acids, flavonoids,
phenolic monoterpene, secoiridoid and stilbenoid
were among the phenolic classes detected. The
highest concentration of phenolic compounds was
found in naringenin-7-O-glycoside (4.30±0.00
mg/100g), followed by gallic acid (4.24±0.03
mg/100g), vanillic acid (3.87±0.02 mg/100g), and
4-hydroxybenzoic acid (3.28±0.03 mg/100g)
(Mallek-Ayadi et al., 2018). Meanwhile, the
chemical analysis of tocopherol composition for
three varieties of melon (i.e. honeydew, dessert 5,
and hybrid 1) seed oils revealed the presence of
α-tocopherol, β-tocopherol, γ-tocotrienol, and
γ-tocopherol. Among these three melon varieties,
γ-tocopherol showed the highest concentration
that ranged from 71.4±0.3% to 91.5±0.5% (Petkova
& Antova, 2015).
Besides, Azhari et al. (2014) found that the
Cucumis melo L. var. tibish seed oil contained the
highest concentration of δ- tocopherol (27.40±0.53
mg/100g oil), followed by γ-tocopherol (13.10±0.41
mg/100g oil), and α-tocopherol (2.70±0.17 mg/100g
oil). However, β-tocopherol was not identified in
this study. Next, Mallek-Ayadi et al. (2017)
examined the phenolic compounds found in
Cucumis melo L. (maazoun cultivar) seed oil and
identified 11 phenolic compounds. The highest
content was found in amentoflavone (32.80±0.21
µg/g fresh weight), which was followed by luteolin-
7-O glycoside (9.60±0.01 µg/g fresh weight),
naringenin (4.72±0.01 µg/g fresh weight), and gallic
acid (7.26±0.02 µg/g fresh weight). The tocopherol
composition in the seed oils was dominated by β+γ-
tocopherols (18.13±0.41 mg/100 g), followed by δ-
tocopherol (6.09±0.53 mg/100 g) and α-tocopherol
(2.85±0.17 mg/100g).
4BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS IN Cucumis melo L. AND ITS BENEFICIAL HEALTH EFFECTS
Table 2. Bioactive compounds and beneficial health effects
Author, year
(Mallek-Ayadi
et al
., 2018)
(Mallek-Ayadi
et al.
, 2017)
(Rasouli
et al.
,
2017)
(Mallek-Ayadi
et al.
, 2016)
(Ibrahim &
El-Mesry,
2016)
Country
Tunisia
Tunisia
Iran
Tunisia
Egypt
Fruit part
Cucumis melo
L
.
(
maazoun
cultivar) seeds
Cucumis melo
L.
(
maazoun
cultivar) seed oil
Cucumis melo
L. seed
Cucumis melo
L.
(
maazoun
cultivar) peels
Cucumis melo
L. var.
cantalupensis
Skin
Seed
Flesh
Bioactive compounds
Naringenin-7-O-glycoside
Gallic acid
Vanillic acid
4-hydroxybenzoic acid
Amentoflavone
Gallic acid
Protocatechuic acid
Caffeic acid
Rosmarinic acids
Luteolin-7-O glycoside
α-tocopherol
β+γ-tocopherols
δ-tocopherol
ND
3-Hydroxybenzoic acid
Apigenin-7-glycoside
Isovanillic acid
m-coumaric acid
Oleuropein
Luteolin-7-glycoside
Gallic acid
Tyrosol
Naringenin
Flavone
4-hydroxybenzoic acid
Vanillin
Chlorgenic acid
Coumaric acid
ND
ND
Amount
4.30±0.00 mg/100g extract
4.24±0.03 mg/100g extract
3.87±0.02 mg/100g extract
3.28±0.03 mg/100g extract
32.80±0.21 µg/g
fw7.26±0.02 µg/g
fw0.89±0.01 µg/g
fw3.13±0.00 µg/g
fw2.91±0.04 µg/g
fw9.60±0.01 µg/g
fw2.85±0.17 mg/100g oil
18.13±0.41 mg/100g oil
6.09±0.53 mg/100g oil
ND
33.5±0.37 mg/100g extract
29.3±0.17 mg/100g extract
23.7±0.04 mg/100g extract
19.9±0.37 mg/100g extract
18.9±0.29 mg/100g extract
16.5±0.15 mg/100g extract
12.1±0.12 mg/100g extract
11.4±0.03 mg/100g extract
11.6±0.11 mg/100g extract
13.5±0.32 mg/100g extract
326.2 µg/g dw
197.4 µg/g dw
65.9 µg/g dw
81.1 µg/g dw
ND
ND
Health benefits
ND
ND
Anti-angiogenic effect of purified trypsin inhibitor on
three dimensional cultures of human umbilical vein
endothelial cells
ND
Antioxidant activity (DPPH)
91.73±0.35%
48.55±0.84%
66.36±0.95%
BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS IN Cucumis melo L. AND ITS BENEFICIAL HEALTH EFFECTS 5
Table 2 continued...
(Mehra
et al.
,
2015)
(Petkova &
Antova, 2015)
(Azhari
et al
.,
2014)
(Siddeeg & Alsir,
2014)
(Al-Sayed &
Ahmed, 2013)
(Chen & Kang,
2013)
India
Bulgaria
China
China
Egypt
South
Korea
Musk melon (
Cucumis melo
L
.
)
seeds
Cucumis melo
L. seed oil
Honeydew
Dessert 5
Hybrid 1
Cucumis melo
L. var.
tibish
seed
C. melo
L. var.
tibish
seeds
Sharlyn melon
(
Cucumis melo
L.) peels
C. melo
L. var.
makuwa Makino
seed
ND
α-tocopherol
β-tocopherol
γ- tocopherol
γ-tocotrienol
α-tocopherol
β-tocopherol
γ- tocopherol
γ-tocotrienol
α-tocopherol
β-tocopherol
γ- tocopherol
γ-tocotrienol
δ- tocopherol
γ-tocopherol
α-tocopherol
Hexenal
4-hydroxybenzoic acid
vanillin
coumaric acid
chlorogenic acid
Unsaturated fatty acid: palmitic
acid, oleic acid and linoleic acid
ND
2.9±0.1%
1.7±0.1%
91.5±0.5%
3.9±0.1%
19.7±0.3%
ND
71.4±0.3%
8.9±0.5%
6.2±0.2%
ND
78.5±0.5%
15.3±0.3%
27.40±0.53 mg/100g oil
13.10±0.41 mg/100g oil
2.70±0.17 mg/100g oil
ND
325.3 µg/g dw
199.2 µg/g dw
80.8 µg/g dw
66.2 µg/g dw
ND
Antioxidant activity (FRAP: 5.63 µg BHTE/mg)
ND
ND
ND
Antioxidant activity
ABTS: 23.30 mg/mL DPPH: 25.25 mg/mL
Antibacterial activity against Gram-positive
bacteria and Gram-negative bacteria
ND
Antidiabetic activity by inhibiting α-glucosidase by
35.3% and α-amylase by 61.8%
6BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS IN Cucumis melo L. AND ITS BENEFICIAL HEALTH EFFECTS
Table 2 continued...
(Norrizah
et al.
,
2012)
(Arora
et al.
,
2011)
(Gill
et al.
,
2011)
Malaysia
India
India
Cucumis melo
L
.
cultivars
Glamour flesh
Champion flesh
Honeymoon flesh
Glamour skin
Champion skin
Honeymoon skin
Glamour seed
Champion seed
Honeymoon seed
Cucumis. melo
L. var.
agrestis
seeds
Cucumis melo
L.
var.
agrestis
seed
β-carotene
ND
ND
ND
ND
5.2x10-5%
3.4x10-4%
9.5x10-4%
ND
ND
ND
ND
Antioxidant activity (DPPH: SC50)
ND
320 µg/ml
390 µg/ml
500 µg/ml
250 µg/ml
270 µg/ml
450 µg/ml
Anti-inflammatory activity in which the paw edema
was reduced by 61.6% at 300 mg/kg
Analgesic activity was 70.6% using acetic acid
induced writhing method
Antioxidant activity
DPPH: Hydrogen peroxide:
24.01±7.1% to 45.23±5.4% to
75.59±6.7% 69.86±4.0%
Anti-inflammatory activity in which the paw edema
was reduced by 56.5% at 300 mg/kg
Antioxidant activity
DPPH: Hydrogen peroxide:
52.8±0.28% to 35.2±0.02% to
74.9±0.76% 58.9±0.01%
BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS IN Cucumis melo L. AND ITS BENEFICIAL HEALTH EFFECTS 7
Table 2 continued...
(Laur & Tian,
2011)
(Sood
et al.
,
2011)
(Ismail
et al.
,
2010)
(Parmar & Kar,
2009)
USA
India
Malaysia
India
Cantaloupe
Oro Rico (CA, USA)
Durango (CA, USA)
Caribbean Gold (Honduras)
Cantaloupe unknown variety
(Guatemala)
Honeydew
Emerald (CA, USA)
Vanessa (CA, USA)
Saturno(CA, USA)
Santa Fe (CA, USA)
Summer Dew (Honduras)
Honeydew unknown variety
(Mexico)
Cucumis melo
L.
var.
agrestis
seeds
Cucumis melo
L.
Flesh
Seed
Skin
Cucumis melo
L. peel
β-carotene
Triterpenoids, sterols
ND
ND
3138±228.1 µg/100g fw
2448±291.8 µg/100g fw
3633±322.7 µg/100g fw
3861±559.7 µg/100g fw
124.1±49.7 µg/100g fw
63.1±11.0 µg/100g fw
118.7±31.9 µg/100g fw
109.1±8.3 µg/100g fw
99.0±27.6 µg/100g fw
172.9±50.6 µg/100g fw
ND
ND
ND
ND
ND
Antiulcer activity through three models: pyloric
ligation, water immersion stress, and indomethacin
induced ulcer models.
Antioxidant activity (DPPH: 52.8±0.28%
to 74.9±0.76%)
Antioxidant activity
DPPH RSA Hydroxyl RSA
(mg/ml) (g DMSOE/g extract)
11.9±1.00 67.19±8.90
25.44±2.83 37.37±2.42
9.58±0.37 39.11±2.91
Protect against hypothyroidism
8BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS IN Cucumis melo L. AND ITS BENEFICIAL HEALTH EFFECTS
Bioactive compounds in Cucumis melo L. flesh
β-carotene and vitamin C content in cantaloupe
and honeydew melons were examined in a study
conducted by (Laur & Tian, 2011). It was observed
that the cantaloupe melons possessed higher β-
carotene and vitamin C content compared to
honeydew melons. Next, three rock melon cultivars
viz Honeymoon, Champion and Glamour were
explored in terms of their β-carotene content. The
highest content was found in Honeymoon with
9.5×10-4%, followed by Glamour (5.2×10-5%) and
Champion (3.4×10-4%) (Norrizah et al., 2012).
Antioxidant activity
Five studies examined the anti-oxidant activity
of Cucumis melo L., which was evaluated using various
assays like 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazylradical
radical scavenging activity (DPPH RSA); hydroxyl
radical scavenging activity (HRSA); ferric reducing
antioxidant power (FRAP); hydrogen peroxide RSA;
and 2,2'-azino-bis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-
sulphonic acid) radical scavenging activity (ABTS
RSA). First, Ibrahim and El-Masry (2016) reported
that the DPPH RSA of Cucumis melo L. var.
cantalupensis extract was 91.73±0.35%, 66.36±
0.95% and 48.55±0.84% for skin, flesh and seed,
respectively. Next, the DPPH assay conducted on the
three varieties of seed and skin of rock melon
cultivars (i.e. Glamour, Champion and Honeymoon)
demonstrated SC50 that ranged from 250 to 500 µg/
mL, whereby Glamour seed exhibited the greatest
RSA at the lowest concentration (Norrizah et al.,
2012). Besides, another study evaluated the DPPH
RSA and HRSA of methanolic extract of the flesh,
seed and skin of Cucumis melo L. The IC50 of DPPH
RSA ranged from 9.58±0.37 mg/mL to 25.44±2.83
mg/mL, while the HRSA ranged from 37.37±2.42
dimethyl sulfoxide equivalents (DMSOE)/g extract
to 67.19±8.90 g DMSOE/g extract (Ismail et al.,
2010).
In addition, the FRAP of Cucumis melo L. seeds
was 5.63 µg butylated hydroxytoluene (BHTE)/mg
sample as reported by Mehra et al. (2015). The anti-
oxidant activity of Seinat (Cucumis melo L. var.
tibish) seed oil was also examined using ABTS assay
and DPPH assay, with IC50 of 23.30 mg/mL and
25.25 mg/mL in comparison with BHT (10.52 mg/
mL and 14.05 mg/mL), respectively (Azhari et al.,
2014). Moreover, three studies examined the
Cucumis melo L. var agrestis seed extract, whereby
both studies conducted by Gill et al. (2011) and
Sood et al. (2011) exposed the Cucumis melo L. var
agrestis seed extract to DPPH and its RSA. They
ranged from 52.8±0.28% to 74.9±0.76% with the
extract concentration of 100 µg/mL to 300 µg/mL.
Besides, another DPPH assay performed on the
same seed extract as previous study revealed the
RSA of 24.01±7.1% to 75.59±6.7%, with extract
concentration ranging from 50 µg/mL to 300 µg/mL.
Meanwhile, 200 µg/mL to 400 µg/mL of extract
showed 45.23±5.4% to 69.86±4.0% of hydrogen
peroxide RSA (Arora et al., 2011). Last but not
least, the hydrogen peroxide RSA of seed extract
concentration ranging from 25 µg/mL to 200 µg/mL
was 35.2±0.02% to 58.9±0.01% (Gill et al., 2011).
Anti-inflammatory and analgesic activity
Gill et al. (2011) tested the anti-inflammatory
activity of Cucumis melo L. var agrestis seed extract
using carrageenan-induced paw edema in rats. Its
analgesic activity was also examined using tail
immersion and tail flick methods in mice.
Significant reduction in paw edema of 43.4% and
56.6% was observed at the dose of 200 mg/kg and
300 mg/kg of seed extract, respectively, whereby
higher dose resulted in significant pain alleviation.
Next, another study conducted by Arora et al.
(2011) evaluated the analgesic activity of the seed
extract (same as previous study) using acetic-acid
induced jerking response in albino mice and tail
immersion method in albino rats accordingly. The
anti-inflammatory activity was also investigated
using the same method as the previous study, which
yielded results reporting that the rat paw edema was
inhibited by 61.6% at the dose of 300 mg/kg of
seed extract. Besides, at the dose of 300 mg/kg, the
analgesic activity was at 70.6% using acetic acid-
induced writhing method, and significant increment
of pain threshold was observed after 60 min when
using the tail immersion method.
Anti-bacterial activity and anti-ulcer activity
An in vitro study was conducted in China to
explore the anti-bacterial activity of essential oil
extracted from Seinat (Cucumis melo L. var. tibish)
seeds against three strains of Gram-positive bacteria
(i.e. Streptococcus pyogenes, Staphylococcus
aureus and Bacillus subtilis) and three strains of
Gram-negative bacteria (Salmonella typhimurium,
Shigella dysenterae and Escherichia coli). The
outcomes of this study consequently concluded that
the extracted essential oil exhibited anti-bacterial
activity against all bacteria, especially Gram-
positive bacteria, with a minimum inhibitory
concentration that varied from 0.5 to 5 mg/mL of
sample (Siddeeg & Alsir, 2014). Similarly, the anti-
ulcer activity of methanolic extract of Cucumis melo
L. seeds was tested against gastric ulcerations using
pyloric ligation, water immersion stress and non-
steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) (i.e.
indomethacin)-induced ulcer models. The findings
concluded that the seed extract suppressed the
ulcers in pyloric ligation, water immersion stress,
and NSAIDs-induced ulcer models by 57.6%, 67.6%
BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS IN Cucumis melo L. AND ITS BENEFICIAL HEALTH EFFECTS 9
and 61.9%, respectively, upon administration at the
dose of 300 mg/kg (Sood et al., 2011).
Anti-hypothyroidism, anti-angiogenic and anti-
diabetic activity
An in vivo study conducted on both healthy
normal and propylthiouracil-induced hypothyroid
Wistar albino male rat demonstrated significant
increments in thyroid hormone (i.e. T3 and T4)
levels following the administration of 100 mg/kg
Cucumis melo L. peel extracts. This implied that
the peel extracts possessed thyroid stimulatory
properties (Parmar & Kar, 2009). Meanwhile, an in-
vitro study was undertaken to examine the anti-
angiogenic effect of trypsin inhibitor purified from
Cucumis melo L. seeds on the three-dimensional
culture of human umbilical vein endothelial cells.
The finding revealed that the trypsin inhibitor can
suppress the angiogenesis (Rasouli et al., 2017).
Chen and Kang (2013) investigated the role of
oriental melon (Cucumis melo L. var. makuwa
Makino) seed on α-glucoside and α-amylase
suppression. The results found that hexane extract
inhibited the α-glucoside and α-amylase by 35.5%
and 61.8%, respectively.
DISCUSSION
Different fruit parts contain different bioactive
compounds and have varying concentrations. The
qualitative and quantitative profile of the bioactive
compounds in different fruit parts will inevitably
affect their functional properties (Silva et al., 2018;
Torres-León et al., 2016). From the findings, the
bioactive compounds found in Cucumis melo L.
peel consisted of 3-hydroxybenzoic acid, apigenin-
7-glycoside, isovanillic acid, vanillin, m-coumaric
acid, chlorogenic acid, oleuropein, luteolin-7-
glycoside, chlorogenic acid, flavone, gallic acid,
naringenin and tyrosol. Meanwhile, the bioactive
compounds present in Cucumis melo L. seed
included naringenin-7-O-glycoside, gallic acid,
vanillic acid, 4-hydroxybenzoic acid,
amentoflavone, luteolin-7-O glycoside, α-
tocopherol, β-tocopherol, γ-tocopherol, δ-
tocopherol and γ-tocotrienol. For Cucumis melo L.
flesh, β-carotene and vitamin C were observed. In
terms of the abundance of phenolic compounds, 3-
hydroxybenzoic acid was the most abundant
phenolic compounds present in Cucumis melo L.
peels, while narigenin-7-O-glycoside was the
predominant phenolic compounds in Cucumis melo
L. seeds and amentoflavone was the major phenolic
compounds in Cucumis melo L. seed oils.
A study reported that 3-hydroxybenzoic acid
possesses anti-mutagenic, anti-microbial and anti-
fungal properties. Isovanillic acid also manifests
anti-oxidant and anti-bacterial effects (Khadem &
Marles, 2010). Besides, chlorogenic and coumaric
acids also play an important role in preventing
cancer and cardiovascular disease (Bendini et al.,
2007). Similarly, gallic acid and tyrosol exhibit anti-
inflammatory and anti-cancer properties (Soong &
Barlow, 2006), as well as free radical scavenging and
antibacterial activities against the intestinal flora
(Ismail et al., 2012). Another study reported that
gallic acid possesses anti-cancer, anti-mutagenic
and anti-inflammatory properties (Jabri-Karoui et
al., 2012), while apigenin-7-glycoside, naringenin-
7-O-glycoside, and luteolin-7-glycoside display
anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, anti-tumor and free
radical scavenging activities (Bhujbal et al., 2010;
Kim et al., 2006). Oleuropein is yet another phenolic
compound that exhibits a potent anti-oxidant
activity (Rodríguez-Morató et al., 2015). Lastly,
amentoflavone as the main flavone identified in
Cucumis melo L. seed oil demonstrates anti-oxidant
capacity (Mallek-Ayadi et al., 2017).
Furthermore, seed oils are good sources of
vitamin E (i.e. tocopherols and tocotrienols) (Silva
et al., 2018). These compounds possess antioxidant
properties and are consequently vital in controlling
the quality of vegetables oils via preventing poly-
unsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) oxidation (Atanasov
et al., 2018; Huang et al., 2002; Mallek-Ayadi et
al., 2017). Vitamin E could also protect the
biological system from reactive oxygen species and
prevent chronic diseases, such as cardiovascular
diseases, Alzheimer disease, and cancer (Castelo-
Branco & Torres, 2009; Nyam et al., 2009).
Evidence suggested that γ and α-homologues are the
major forms of tocopherols and tocotrienol present
in the fruit seed oils (Górnaœ et al., 2015), while
α-tocopherol was revealed in a study to exert
beneficial effects on human nutrition due to its
higher biological activity compared to other
tocopherols (Saloua et al., 2009). Meanwhile, γ-
tocopherol is considered as the best antioxidant
(Dias et al., 2013; O’Brien, 2009), which is due to
its lipid oxidation suppressing abilities in food via
stabilizing hydroperoxy and other free radicals that
could influence the oil flavor quality (Mallek-Ayadi
et al., 2017). By looking at Cucumis melo L. flesh,
a study reported that orange-fleshed fruits contain
the highest amount of γ-carotene and exhibit high
antioxidant activities (Truong et al., 2007).
Various evidence stated that the antioxidant
activity of the fruit extract is highly attributable to
the concentration of phenolic compounds found in
the fruit itself (Ismail et al., 2010; Norrizah et al.,
2012; Rolim et al., 2018). The findings of DPPH
assay proposed that the phenolic compounds present
in the fruit extract could scavenge the free radicals
10 BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS IN Cucumis melo L. AND ITS BENEFICIAL HEALTH EFFECTS
via electron- or hydrogen-donating mechanisms.
Subsequently, it could prevent the initiation of
detrimental free radical-mediated chain reactions
(Ibrahim & El-Masry, 2016). Since free radicals
could induce pain stimulation, anti-oxidants play a
crucial role in reducing the pain and contributing
to its analgesic effect (Gill et al., 2011). Thus,
Cucumis melo L. exhibited its analgesic effect by
inhibiting free radical generation, whereby such
free radicals could also lead to inflammation. This
occurred via increased gene activity in the pro-
duction of pro-inflammatory cytokines, such as
interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor, and interferons
(Fischer & Maier, 2015). Similarly, anti-inflamma-
tory properties of Cucumis melo L. was also observed
in Carrageenan-induced rat edema. Carrageenan
stimulated the accumulation of leukocytes in the
pleural space and increased the leukotriene B4
(LKB4) level in the pleural exudate after inflamma-
tory stimulation. The migration of neutrophils to the
affected area would release the toxic oxygen free
radicals into extracellular space, which contributed
to the pro-inflammatory condition. Additionally,
Cucumis melo L. could suppress the leukocyte influx
and increase the LTB4 levels (Gill et al., 2011).
A study had suggested that the presence of
hexenal in the essential oil of Seinat (Cucumis melo
L. var. tibish) seeds was attributed as the active
compound responsible for anti-bacterial activity
(Kubo et al., 2004). Interestingly, Gram-positive
bacteria are more vulnerable compared to Gram-
negative bacteria due to their lower resistance
(Siddeeg & Alsir, 2014). Moreover, Cucumis melo
L. peel extract induced T4 production at the
glandular level and peripheral mono deiodination
of T4 (main source of T3 synthesis), which exerted
its anti-hypothyroidism activity (Peeters & Visser,
2017). Besides, the anti-angiogenic activity of
Cucumis melo L. could be due to the suppression of
several important steps in tumor growth, which was
capable of interrupting angiogenesis and tumor
progression (Rasouli et al., 2017).
Furthermore, the anti-diabetic effect of Cucumis
melo L. was exhibited through the suppression of
α-glucosidase and α-amylase. The inhibition of
these two enzymes could delay the oligosaccharide
liberation from starch, which resulted in slower
glucose absorption in the small intestine for
achieving better postprandial blood glucose control
(Apostolidis et al., 2011). Multiple evidence also
suggested that unsaturated fatty acids such as
palmitic acid, oleic acid and linoleic acid play a role
in inhibiting the α-glucosidase and α-amylase
(Chen & Kang, 2013; Paul et al., 2010). Last but
not least, the anti-ulcer activity of Cucumis melo L.
may be attributed to the presence of triterpenoids
and sterols, which resulted in the reduction of
vascular permeability, free radical synthesis, lipid
peroxidation, and the strengthening of mucosal
barriers (Sood et al., 2011).
This scoping review discerned some short-
comings, namely all prior studies have been
conducted to assess the biological activities of
melon by-products that took place in vitro and in
vivo. Thus, more human studies should be
conducted to further confirm their therapeutic
effects in relation to several diseases. Besides,
only English and full text were included, while the
literature search was also limited to three electronic
databases. Therefore, a more thorough search should
be conducted to obtain more related articles. Finally,
the safety issues of the bioactive compounds were
not investigated and further study should be
undertaken to explore the safety issues.
CONCLUSION
Cucumis melo L., particularly its by-products (seeds
and peels), exhibited various health benefits. Thus,
there is a potential of incorporating these by-
products into various food and nutraceutical
applications to create novel functional food or
dietary supplements. The bioavailability of the
bioactive compounds and the sensory aspects of
the new food products should be investigated when
developing the products to ensure efficacy and
sustainability. This can enhance human health and
well-being by improving their quality of life.
Concurrently, the food waste that emerged as a major
issue could be overcome through utilizing Cucumis
melo L. by-products.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
This work has been supported by the Fundamental
Research Grant Scheme (FRGS/1/2018/TK02/
UNISZA/03/1). We would like to extend our
gratitude to all individuals who have helped in the
article writing processes.
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