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Trapusha

Cucumis sativus

Trapusha (Cucumis sativus) is a plant drug, also called Kamtakilata, Trapusam and Urvarukam. Flavonoids (vitexin, orientin) show low to moderate bioavailability (10-20%). The high water content (>95%) of fresh fruit facilitates rapid dissolution and absorption of water-soluble constituents.

Key facts
Botanical nameCucumis sativus
FamilyCucurbitaceae · other entries in this family
OrderCucurbitales
Taxon identifiersGBIF 2874569 · Wikidata Q23425 · NCBI Taxonomy 3659
Names in other languages
Sanskritकंटकीलता (kaṃṭakīlatā), त्रपुषम् (trapuṣam), उर्वारुकम् (urvārukam)
Hindiखीरा (khīrā)
Tamilவெள்ளரி

Sources: Flowers of India, Cucumis sativus ('Cucumber') page lists 'Hindi: खीरा Khira'; MMPND (Multilingual Multiscript Plant Name Database, Univ. of Melbourne), Sorting Cucumis names, gives Hindi 'Kheera (khira), Kakri, Kakdi, Tihu' for C. sativus; Flowers of India, Cucumis sativus page: 'Sanskrit: Trapushpa, कंटकीलता Kantakilata'; the eFloraofIndia Cucumis sativus notes give त्रपुसम् (trapusam) and त्रपुलम् (trapulam); Flowers of India, Cucumis sativus page: 'Sanskrit: कंटकीलता Kantakilata'; Flowers of India, Cucumis sativus page: 'Tamil: Vellarikkay'; State Medicinal Plants Board Kerala (smpbkerala.in) herbal-data page for Cucumis sativus titles it 'Salad Vellari'; MMPND Sorting Cucumis names, Cucumis sativus: Hindi 'Kheera (khira), Kakri, Kakdi, Tihu'; wisdomlib entry for Urvaruka/Urvāruka citing Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary, Apte's Practical Sanskrit-English Dictionary and Arthaśāstra II.15.19 ('cucumber (urvāruka)'); the companion Urvāru entry identifies the plant as Cucumis sativus, Cucurbitaceae. How we source.

The evidence at a glance

12papers on this site for this drug, published 2015 to 2024, every one with a DOI.

  • 6Other clinical studies and reviews
  • 6Laboratory and animal studies

A count is not a conclusion and a tier is a study design, not a verdict. Everything listed here is laboratory or animal work, which does not show an effect in people. Each paper is listed with what it measured on the page below. See the research index for how papers are tiered.

Names and identification

LanguageName
EnglishCucumber

Ayurvedic pharmacology (Dravyaguna)

PropertyValueDescription
Rasa (Taste)MadhuraPrimary taste
Guna (Quality)Guru, SnigdhaPhysical quality
Virya (Potency)SheetaHeating/Cooling effect
Vipaka (Post-digestive)MadhuraPost-digestive effect

Dosage forms and preparation

Dosage Forms: Svarasa (fresh juice), Capsule, Tablet, Beeja Churna (seed powder)

Standard Dosage: 50-100 mL fresh cucumber juice twice daily; 3-6 g seed powder twice daily

Optimal Timing: Morning on empty stomach for diuretic effect; between meals for cooling action; seed powder after meals

Storage: Fresh juice refrigerated at 2-8 deg C. Seed powder in airtight containers at 15-25 deg C with desiccant. Defatted powder at room temperature. Seed oil under nitrogen in dark glass at 2-8 deg C.

Marker Compounds: Cucurbitacin B, Cucurbitacin E, Vitexin, Orientin, Linoleic acid, Oleic acid, beta-Sitosterol, Tocopherols

Synergistic Combinations

  • Ushira (Vetiveria zizanioides) - cooling and diuretic synergy
  • Chandan (sandalwood) - Pitta-pacifying combination
  • Draksha (Vitis vinifera) - renal supportive combination
  • Gokshura (Tribulus terrestris) - urinary tract supportive synergy

Published research

Literature indexed in PubMed that concerns this subject, grouped by study type. A paper appearing here is a record of what has been published, not evidence that the subject works, and laboratory or animal results do not transfer to people. Study titles link to PubMed so you can read the source rather than take our word.

Other clinical studies and reviews6

  1. Nguyen NH, Ho PTB, Le LTT. 2024. Revisit and explore the ethylene-independent mechanism of sex expression in cucumber (Cucumis sativus)Plant reproduction. PMID 38598160 · doi:10.1007/s00497-024-00501-1
  2. Grumet R, Lin YC, Rett-Cadman S and others. 2022. Morphological and Genetic Diversity of Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) Fruit DevelopmentPlants (Basel, Switzerland). PMID 36616152 · doi:10.3390/plants12010023
  3. Khan A, Mishra A, Hasan SM and others. 2022. Biological and medicinal application of Cucumis sativus Linn. - review of current status with future possibilitiesJournal of complementary & integrative medicine. PMID 34047145 · doi:10.1515/jcim-2020-0240
  4. Olechowska E, Słomnicka R, Kaźmińska K and others. 2022. The genetic basis of cold tolerance in cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.)-the latest developments and perspectivesJournal of applied genetics. PMID 35838983 · doi:10.1007/s13353-022-00710-2
  5. Che G, Zhang X. 2019. Molecular basis of cucumber fruit domesticationCurrent opinion in plant biology. PMID 30253288 · doi:10.1016/j.pbi.2018.08.006
  6. Pawełkowicz M, Zieliński K, Zielińska D and others. 2016. Next generation sequencing and omics in cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) breeding directed researchPlant science : an international journal of experimental plant biology. PMID 26566826 · doi:10.1016/j.plantsci.2015.07.025

Laboratory and animal studies6

  1. Amani T, Surenthar M, Shanmugam R. 2024. Anti-inflammatory and Antioxidant Activity of Cucumis sativus and Citrus macroptera Herbal Formulation: An In-Vitro StudyCureus. PMID 38327926 · doi:10.7759/cureus.51818
  2. Hendrayana T, Yoana K, Adnyana IK and others. 2023. Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) Fruit and Combination with Losartan Attenuate the Elevation of Blood Pressure in Hypertensive Rats Induced by Angiotensin IIJournal of pharmacopuncture. PMID 38162466 · doi:10.3831/KPI.2023.26.4.298
  3. Singh A, Gracheva M, Kovács Kis V and others. 2023. Apoplast utilisation of nanohaematite initiates parallel suppression of RIBA1 and FRO1&3 in Cucumis sativusNanoImpact. PMID 36470408 · doi:10.1016/j.impact.2022.100444
  4. Ma X, Gu Y, Liang C. 2023. Adaptation of protein phosphatases in Oryza sativa and Cucumis sativus to microcystinsEnvironmental science and pollution research international. PMID 36018413 · doi:10.1007/s11356-022-22691-9
  5. He J, Verstappen F, Jiao A and others. 2022. Terpene synthases in cucumber (Cucumis sativus) and their contribution to herbivore-induced volatile terpenoid emissionThe New phytologist. PMID 34668204 · doi:10.1111/nph.17814
  6. Nanasato Y, Tabei Y. 2015. Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) and kabocha squash (Cucurbita moschata Duch)Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.). PMID 25300850 · doi:10.1007/978-1-4939-1695-5_24

Reviewed by Dr. Awadesh Pratap Singh, BAMS, on 11 October 2026. What that review covered.

Consult a qualified vaidya before acting on anything here. Ayurvedic practice is prescribed to a person, not to a condition: the same dravya is given, withheld or substituted depending on your constitution, your agni, the season and what else you are already taking. A page cannot know any of that. Self-prescribing from a reference is how the wrong preparation, the wrong dose or the wrong anupana gets used.

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