An official website of the United States government.

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Dr. Duke's Phytochemical and Ethnobotanical Databases
U.S. Department of Agriculture

 Luffa cylindrica (Cucurbitaceae)

Download a full report in PDF format
Common name(s)
Hetima; Bestru; Pipengaille; Ketola

Data Views

List of Ethnobotany Plant
Click on column headings to sort table by that column
Uses Country/Region Reference
Amenorrhea Java *
Cancer(Nose) Gabon Hartwell, J.L. 1967-71. Plants used against cancer. A survey. Lloydia 30-34.
Carminative China *
Cathartic Sudan Broun, A.F., and R.E. Massey. 1929. Flora of the Sudan. The controller, Sudan Govt. Office, Wellington House, Buchingham Gate, London, S.W.I.
Cathartic Elsewhere *
Cough Japan Altschul, Siri Von Reis. 1973. Drugs and foods from little-known plants. Harvard Univ. Press
Diuretic Elsewhere ANON. 1978. List of Plants. Kyoto Herbal Garden, Parmacognostic Research Lab., Central Research Division, Takeda Chem. Industries, Ltd., Ichijoji, Sakyoku, Kyoto, Japan.
Diuretic Elsewhere *
Emetic Sudan Broun, A.F., and R.E. Massey. 1929. Flora of the Sudan. The controller, Sudan Govt. Office, Wellington House, Buchingham Gate, London, S.W.I.
Emetic Elsewhere *
Emetic Samoa *
Lactagogue Elsewhere *
Phlegm Japan Altschul, Siri Von Reis. 1973. Drugs and foods from little-known plants. Harvard Univ. Press
Purgative China *
Purgative Samoa *
Respiratory Japan *
Sponge Sumatra *
Vermifuge China *
*Unless otherwise noted all references are to Duke, James A. 1992. Handbook of phytochemical constituents of GRAS herbs and other economic plants. Boca Raton, FL. CRC Press.