What Is Bitter Melon Extract Good For?

Bitter Melon contains functional components such as polysaccharides, saponins, polypeptides, and flavonoids, as well as rich trace elements. In recent years, scholars have found that Bitter Melon Extracts have the functions of regulating glucose and lipid metabolism, improving islet cell function, anti-oxidation, alleviating inflammation, and regulating intestinal flora. The composition and efficacy of the active extract of bitter melon are analyzed below.

1. Water extract

The water extract of bitter gourd has the functions of regulating glycolipid metabolism, antibacterial and antioxidant. In vitro studies have found that bitter melon water extract can activate the insulin signaling pathway and promote glucose consumption and glycogen accumulation. The water extract of bitter gourd may work through functional components such as polysaccharides and polyphenols.

2. Alcohol extract

Studies have shown that the alcohol extract of bitter melon can inhibit the growth of pathogenic bacteria and pests, and control the metabolism of glycolipids. Alcohol extract of bitter melon modulates glucose and glycogen content, promotes fatty acid oxidation, and reduces triglyceride (TG) accumulation. And the way of action is different from that of water extract, which may be related to the fact that the two contain different functional components.

3. Polysaccharides

The extraction methods of bitter gourd polysaccharides mainly include water extraction, alkaline extraction, dilute acid extraction, ultrasonic, microwave, and enzyme-assisted methods. The combined effect is better. Subsequent deproteinization, decolorization, and further separation and purification require methods such as salt precipitation, membrane separation, and column chromatography. Balsam pear polysaccharide has a variety of biological activities such as lipid-lowering, anti-oxidation, anti-tumor, and antibacterial.

4. Saponins

Various parts of bitter gourd contain saponins, which are divided into steroidal saponins and triterpenoid saponins. The latter has a higher content and is also the source of the bitterness of bitter gourd. The extraction of balsam pear crude saponins is similar to that of balsam pear alcohol extract, and crude saponins can be obtained by ethanol extraction or ultrasonication and concentration. The purified saponins were obtained by extraction with n-butanol, methanol, acetone and other organic reagents and column chromatography.

Momordica saponins have antioxidant, anti-tumor, enhancing insulin sensitivity and lowering blood sugar and blood lipids.

5. Proteins and peptides

Bitter melon protein and peptides are the active components of bitter melon, which are composed of 17 kinds of amino acids, among which bitter melon seeds have the highest protein content. By means of alkali-soluble acid precipitation, salt solution fractional precipitation, ultrafiltration, dialysis, column chromatography and other methods, balsam pear protein and polypeptide can be separated and purified. Bitter melon protein has anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor and metabolism-improving effects.

Summary

In recent years, the functional components and health benefits of bitter gourd have been continuously discovered, and the clinical application prospect is broad. As a high-quality Bitter Melon Extract Powder supplier in China, JINTAI provides you with specifications of different active ingredients.