Kingdom: Plantae

Subkingdom: Tracheobionta

Superdivision: Spermatophyta

Division: Magnoliophyta

Class: Magnoliopsida

Order: Violales

Family: Cucurbitaceae

Genus: Sechium

Species:

Sechium

edule (Jacq.)

Sw.

COMMON NAME: Sayote

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Sechium edule (Jacq.) Sw.

SYNONYMS/ OTHER SCIENTIFIC NAME:
Chayota edulis (Jacq.) Jacq.
Sechium americanum Poir.
Sicyos edulis Jacq.

OTHER COMMON NAME:

Tsayote (Most dialects)
Chayote (Engl.)
Choyote (Engl.)
Choko (Engl.)
Christophine (Engl.)
Pipinella (Engl.)
Vegetable pear (Engl.)

MORPHOLOGY:
 ROOTS
Large tuberous root.

 LEAVES
Leaves simple, spirally arranged; petiole 3-25 cm long; leaf-blade
broadly ovate-circular in outline, 7-25 cm in diameter, base deeply
cordate, 3- to 7-angular or lobed, acute, margins obtusely dentate,
scabrid hairy.

 FLOWERS
Flowers are staminate, yellowish to pale green, in long racemes.
Pistillate flowers are solitary, corolla 12 to 17 millimeters.

 STEM/BARK
Stem climbing or sprawling, longitudinally grooved, growing 10-15
m in a single season. Tendrils large, 2- to 5-branched.

 FRUIT
Fruit a one-seeded fleshy berry, variable, commonly pear-shaped,
7-20 cm long, somewhat ribbed, smooth or shortly spiny, dark
green to almost white; fruit stalk 2-3 cm long, pendent; pulp white or
greenish-white.

 SEEDS
Seed solitary, ovoid to ellipsoid, 2.5-5 cm long, compressed, white,
germinating within the fruit, usually while the fruit is still attached to
the plant; in some genotypes seed-coat with fibres radiating into the
flesh, in others obsolescent and the flesh fibreless.

CULTIVATION:
Sechium edule is a vine native to Mexico that has been widely
introduced and cultivated for human consumption. The fruits, tubers,
seeds and young shoots are edible and widely commercialized. This
species has escaped from cultivation and now grows spontaneously on
abandoned agricultural lands and disturbed sites near villages and
roadsides. Under favorable environmental conditions, S. edule grows
copiously and can form dense colonies. The climbing stems may be
several meters in length and may ascent high into forest canopies,
engulfing native vegetation and shading-out plants in the understory. S.
edule can also suffocate and breakdown trees and shrubs that support it
due to its heavy weight. Currently, it is listed as invasive in Brazil, Cuba,
Puerto Rico, New Caledonia, Reunion, Bismarck Archipelago and Hawaii.

PROPAGATION:
Seed / spore propagated
Vegetatively propagated
PHYTOCHEMISTRY:
- Study yielded eight flavonoids including three C-glycosyl and five O-
glycosyl flavones. The leaves gave the highest amount of flavonoids
- Phytochemical analysis of fruit (pulps and seeds) yielded alkaloids,
flavonoids, saponins, and terpenoids. (See study below) (10)
- Nutrient analysis of raw chayote per 100 g: (Proximates) water 94.24 g,
energy 19 Kcal, carbohydrates 4.51 g, protein 0.82 g, total fat 0.13 g,
cholesterol 0, dietary fiber 1.7 g, total sugars 1.66 g; (Vitamins) thiamin
0.025 mg, vitamin B6 0.076 mg, folates 93 µg, niacin 0.470 mg,
pantothenic acid 0.249 mg, pyridoxine 0.076 mg, riboflavin 0.029 mg,
vitamin A 0 IU, vitamin C 7.7 mg, vitamin E 0.12 mg, vitamin K 4.1 µg;
(Electrolytes) sodium 2 mg, potassium 125 mg; (Minerals) calcium 17
mg, iron 0.34 mg, magnesium 12 mg, manganese 0.189 mg, phosphorus
18 mg, selenium 0..2 µg, zinc 0.74 mg; (Lipids) total saturated fatty acids
0.028 g,total monosaturated FA 0.010 g, total polyunsaturated FA 0.057 g,
trans FA 0, cholesterol 0.

MEDICINAL USES:
- Fruit is laxative.
- Raw pulp of the fruit is soothing for skin rashes.
- Roasted leaves help in the suppuration of boils.
- Decoction of leaves drunk to relieve urinary retention and dysuria
(burning when urinating) and to dissolve kidney stones.

REFERENCES:

Sayote / Tsayote, chayotte, Sechium edule / CHAYOTE: Philippine Medicinal

Herbs / Philippine Alternative Medicine. (n.d.). Retrieved September 14,
2020, from http://www.stuartxchange.org/Sayote.html

Classification: USDA PLANTS. (n.d.). Retrieved September 14, 2020, from

https://plants.usda.gov/java/ClassificationServlet?source=profile

CABI Invasive Species Compendium. (n.d.). Retrieved September 14, 2020, from
https://www.cabi.org/isc/datasheet/49493