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Gac
Gac, from the Vietnamese gấc (pronounced [ɣək˦˥]), scientific name Momordica cochinchinensis, is a species of plant in the melon and cucumber family Cucurbitaceae native to countries throughout Southeast Asia and to Queensland, Australia. It is notable for its vivid orange-reddish color resulting from a mix of beta-carotene and lycopene.
Momordica cochinchinensis is a perennial tendril climber that may reach up to 15 metres (50 feet) long and a stem diameter up to four centimetres (1+1⁄2 inches). The palmate leaves have 3 to 5 lobes and are carried on a petiole (leaf stem) measuring 6–10 cm (2+1⁄2–4 in) long. They are arranged alternately on the stems and measure up to 20 cm (8 in) wide and long.
This species is dioecious, meaning that male and female flowers are borne on separate plants. The inflorescence on a male plant consists of either a solitary flower or a raceme up to 10 cm (4 in) long, while female flowers are solitary. All flower buds are fully enclosed by bracts, which split open as the flower matures. The mature flowers have five yellowish petals and a black centre.
The fruit are ovoid to broadly ellipsoid, about 15 cm (6 in) long by 10 cm (4 in) diameter, and are covered with numerous small spines on the skin. They are initially green but turn a deep orange/red at maturity, and they contain numerous irregularly-shaped brown or grey seeds, which are enclosed in a bright red aril.
In the northern hemisphere this species flowers from June to August and fruit appear around August to October. In Australia, flowering occurs from December to January and fruit appear from February to April.
The fruit, seeds, and seed oil contain substantial amounts of beta-carotene and lycopene, which collectively impart the characteristic red-orange color to the fruit's tissues. Both aril and seeds are rich in monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids, with oil containing 69% unsaturated fats, including 35% as polyunsaturated fats. Gac has a high concentration of linoleic acid (omega-6) and omega-3 fatty acids.
This species was first described in 1790 by the Portuguese botanist João de Loureiro, who published it in his book Flora cochinchinensis. Loureiro gave this plant the combination Muricia cochinchinensis and noted that it was found in "Cochinchinâ, & Chinâ." In 1826 the German botanist Kurt Polycarp Joachim Sprengel transferred the species to the genus Momordica.
The genus name Momordica is derived from the Latin word mordeo meaning to bite, a reference to the seeds' appearance as though chewed. The species epithet cochinchinensis means "from Cochinchina", the region in the southern part of Vietnam where the plant was first observed by Loureiro.
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Gac
Gac, from the Vietnamese gấc (pronounced [ɣək˦˥]), scientific name Momordica cochinchinensis, is a species of plant in the melon and cucumber family Cucurbitaceae native to countries throughout Southeast Asia and to Queensland, Australia. It is notable for its vivid orange-reddish color resulting from a mix of beta-carotene and lycopene.
Momordica cochinchinensis is a perennial tendril climber that may reach up to 15 metres (50 feet) long and a stem diameter up to four centimetres (1+1⁄2 inches). The palmate leaves have 3 to 5 lobes and are carried on a petiole (leaf stem) measuring 6–10 cm (2+1⁄2–4 in) long. They are arranged alternately on the stems and measure up to 20 cm (8 in) wide and long.
This species is dioecious, meaning that male and female flowers are borne on separate plants. The inflorescence on a male plant consists of either a solitary flower or a raceme up to 10 cm (4 in) long, while female flowers are solitary. All flower buds are fully enclosed by bracts, which split open as the flower matures. The mature flowers have five yellowish petals and a black centre.
The fruit are ovoid to broadly ellipsoid, about 15 cm (6 in) long by 10 cm (4 in) diameter, and are covered with numerous small spines on the skin. They are initially green but turn a deep orange/red at maturity, and they contain numerous irregularly-shaped brown or grey seeds, which are enclosed in a bright red aril.
In the northern hemisphere this species flowers from June to August and fruit appear around August to October. In Australia, flowering occurs from December to January and fruit appear from February to April.
The fruit, seeds, and seed oil contain substantial amounts of beta-carotene and lycopene, which collectively impart the characteristic red-orange color to the fruit's tissues. Both aril and seeds are rich in monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids, with oil containing 69% unsaturated fats, including 35% as polyunsaturated fats. Gac has a high concentration of linoleic acid (omega-6) and omega-3 fatty acids.
This species was first described in 1790 by the Portuguese botanist João de Loureiro, who published it in his book Flora cochinchinensis. Loureiro gave this plant the combination Muricia cochinchinensis and noted that it was found in "Cochinchinâ, & Chinâ." In 1826 the German botanist Kurt Polycarp Joachim Sprengel transferred the species to the genus Momordica.
The genus name Momordica is derived from the Latin word mordeo meaning to bite, a reference to the seeds' appearance as though chewed. The species epithet cochinchinensis means "from Cochinchina", the region in the southern part of Vietnam where the plant was first observed by Loureiro.