Cucurmosin is a type I ribosome inactivating protein (RIP) found in the sarcocarp (flesh) and seed of Cucurbita — notably Cucurbita moschata, that is toxic to cancer cells, if the dosage is high enough, by stopping their ribosomes. Cucurmosin is what Cucurbita use to defend against viral, fungal, and bacterial agents. It takes a lower dose of cucurmosin to kill cancer cells than healthy cells. It has been shown to induce apoptosis in pancreatic cancer and myeloidleukemia cells.
References
↑Preedy, Victor R.; Watson, Ronald Ross; Patel, Vinwood B. (2011). Nuts and Seeds in Health and Disease Prevention. London: Academic Press. p.936. ISBN978-0-12-375688-6.
↑Barbieri, L.; Polito, L.; Bolognesi, A.; Ciani, M.; Pelosi, E.; Farini, V.; Jha, A. K.; Sharma, N.; Vivanco, J. M.; Chambery, A.; Parente, A.; Stirpe, F. (May 2006). "Ribosome-inactivating proteins in edible plants and purification and characterization of a new ribosome-inactivating protein from Cucurbita moschata". Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - General Subjects. 1760 (5): 783–792. doi:10.1016/j.bbagen.2006.01.002. PMID16564632.
↑Hou, Xiaomin; Meehan, Edward J.; Xie, Jieming; Huang, Mingdong; Chen, Minghuang; Chen, Liqing (October 2008). "Atomic resolution structure of cucurmosin, a novel type 1 ribosome-inactivating protein from the sarcocarp of Cucurbita moschata". Journal of Structural Biology. 164 (1): 81–87. doi:10.1016/j.jsb.2008.06.011. PMID18652900.