Bee-autiful work by Ketones

. . . people in Asia name the Durian "King Of Fruits" - I can tell you: it is the "King Of Fruits"!

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The durian (/ˈdjʊriən/) is the fruit of several tree species belonging to the genus Durio. The name 'durian' is derived from the Malay-Indonesian languages word for duri or "spike", a reference to the numerous spike protuberances of the fruit, together with the noun-building suffix -an. There are 30 recognised Durio species, at least nine of which produce edible fruit. Durio zibethinus is the only species available in the international market: other species are sold in their local regions.

 

Regarded by many people in southeast Asia as the "king of fruits", the durian is distinctive for its large size, strong odour, and formidable thorn-covered husk. The fruit can grow as large as 30 centimetres long and 15 centimetres in diameter, and it typically weighs one to three kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale yellow to red, depending on the species.

 

The edible flesh emits a distinctive odour that is strong and penetrating even when the husk is intact. Some people regard the durian as having a pleasantly sweet fragrance; others find the aroma overpowering and revolting. The smell evokes reactions from deep appreciation to intense disgust, and has been described variously as rotten onions, turpentine, and raw sewage. The persistence of its odour has led to the fruit's banishment from certain hotels and public transportation in Southeast Asia.

 

The durian, native to Southeast Asia, has been known to the Western world for about 600 years. The nineteenth-century British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace described its flesh as "a rich custard highly flavoured with almonds". The flesh can be consumed at various stages of ripeness, and it is used to flavour a wide variety of savoury and sweet edibles in Southeast Asian cuisines. The seeds can also be eaten when cooked.

 

There are hundreds of durian cultivars; many consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

 

TAXONOMY

The genus Durio is placed by some taxonomists in the family Bombacaceae, or by others in a broadly defined Malvaceae that includes Bombacaceae, and by others in a smaller family of just seven genera Durionaceae.

 

DESCRIPTION

Durian trees are large, growing to 25–50 metres in height depending on the species. The leaves are evergreen, elliptic to oblong and 10–18 centimetres long. The flowers are produced in three to thirty clusters together on large branches and directly on the trunk with each flower having a calyx (sepals) and five (rarely four or six) petals. Durian trees have one or two flowering and fruiting periods per year, although the timing varies depending on the species, cultivars, and localities. A typical durian tree can bear fruit after four or five years. The durian fruit can hang from any branch and matures roughly three months after pollination. The fruit can grow up to 30 centimetres long and 15 centimetres (6 in) in diameter, and typically weighs one to three kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale-yellow to red, depending on the species. Among the thirty known species of Durio, nine of them have been identified as producing edible fruits: D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. grandiflorus, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. macrantha, D. oxleyanus, and D. testudinarum. There are many species for which the fruit has never been collected or properly examined, however, so other species with edible fruit may exist. The durian is somewhat similar in appearance to the jackfruit, an unrelated species.

 

The name durian comes from the Malay word duri (thorn) together with the suffix -an (for building a noun in Malay). D. zibethinus is the only species commercially cultivated on a large scale and available outside of its native region. Since this species is open-pollinated, it shows considerable diversity in fruit colour and odour, size of flesh and seed, and tree phenology. In the species name, zibethinus refers to the Indian civet, Viverra zibetha. There is disagreement regarding whether this name, bestowed by Linnaeus, refers to civets being so fond of the durian that the fruit was used as bait to entrap them, or to the durian smelling like the civet.

 

Durian flowers are large and feathery with copious nectar, and give off a heavy, sour, and buttery odour. These features are typical of flowers pollinated by certain species of bats that eat nectar and pollen. According to research conducted in Malaysia in the 1970s, durians were pollinated almost exclusively by cave fruit bats (Eonycteris spelaea); however, a 1996 study indicated two species, D. grandiflorus and D. oblongus, were pollinated by spiderhunters (Nectariniidae) and another species, D. kutejensis, was pollinated by giant honey bees and birds as well as bats.

 

CULTIVARS

Over the centuries, numerous durian cultivars, propagated by vegetative clones, have arisen in southeast Asia. They used to be grown with mixed results from seeds of trees bearing superior quality fruit, but now are propagated by layering, marcotting, or more commonly, by grafting, including bud, veneer, wedge, whip or U-grafting onto seedlings of randomly selected rootstocks. Different cultivars may be distinguished to some extent by variations in the fruit shape, such as the shape of the spines. Durian consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

 

Most cultivars have a common name and a code number starting with "D". For example, some popular clones are Kop (D99 Thai: กบ – "frog" [kòp]), Chanee (D123, Thai: ชะนี – gibbon [tɕʰániː]), Berserah or Green Durian or Tuan Mek Hijau (D145 Thai: ทุเรียนเขียว – Green Durian [tʰúriːən kʰǐow]), Kan Yao (D158, Thai: ก้านยาว – Long Stem [kâːn jaːw]), Mon Thong (D159, Thai: หมอนทอง – Golden Pillow [mɔ̌ːn tʰɔːŋ]), Kradum Thong (Thai: กระดุมทอง – Golden Button [kràdum tʰɔːŋ]), and with no common name, D24 and D169. Each cultivar has a distinct taste and odour. More than 200 cultivars of D. zibethinus exist in Thailand.

 

Mon thong is the most commercially sought after for its thick, full-bodied creamy and mild sweet tasting flesh with relatively moderate smell emitted and smaller seeds, while Chanee is the best in terms of its resistance to infection by Phytophthora palmivora. Kan Yao is somewhat less common, but prized for its longer window of time when it is both sweet and odorless at the same time. Among all the cultivars in Thailand, five are currently in large-scale commercial cultivation: Chanee, Mon Thong, Kan Yao, Ruang, and Kradum. There are more than 100 registered cultivars since 1920's in Malaysia and up to 193 cultivar by 1992, and many superior cultivars have been identified through competitions held at the annual Malaysian Agriculture, Horticulture, and Agrotourism Show. In Vietnam, the same process has been achieved through competitions held by the Southern Fruit Research Institute. A recently popular variety is, Cat Mountain King or Musang King.

 

By 2007, Songpol Somsri, a Thai government scientist, had crossbred more than ninety varieties of durian to create Chantaburi No. 1, a cultivar without the characteristic odour. Another hybrid, Chantaburi No. 3, develops the odour about three days after the fruit is picked, which enables an odourless transport yet satisfies consumers who prefer the pungent odour. On 22 May 2012, two other cultivars from Thailand that also lack the usual odour, Long Laplae and Lin Laplae, were presented to the public by Yothin Samutkhiri, governor of Uttaradit province from where these cultivars were developed locally, while he announced the dates for the yearly durian fair of Laplae District, and the name giver to both cultivars.

 

Popular cultivars in Malaysia and Singapore (Singapore imports most of its durians from Malaysia hence the varieties are similar although there may be slight variation in the names) include "D24" which is a popular variety known for its bitter sweet taste; "XO" which has a pale color, thick flesh with a tinge of alcoholic fermentation; "Chook Kiok" (Cantonese meaning: bamboo leg) which has a distinctive yellowish core in the inner stem and "Musang King" ( Musang is the Malay word for civet cat) which is usually the priciest of all cultivars. Musang King has bright yellow flesh and is almost like a more potent or enhanced version of the D24. This particular variety should be consumed last since it tends to make other durians taste bland in comparison.

 

CULTIVATION AND AVAIBILITY

The durian is native to Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia. There is some debate as to whether the durian is native to the Philippines, particularly the Davao region in the island of Mindanao, or was introduced. The durian is grown in other areas with a similar climate; it is strictly tropical and stops growing when mean daily temperatures drop below 22 °C.

 

The centre of ecological diversity for durians is the island of Borneo, where the fruit of the edible species of Durio including D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. oxleyanus and D. testudinarum is sold in local markets. In Brunei, D. zibethinus is not grown because consumers prefer other species such as D. graveolens, D. kutejensis and D. oxleyanus. These species are commonly distributed in Brunei, and together with other species like D. testudinarum and D. dulcis, represent rich genetic diversity.

 

Although the durian is not native to Thailand, the country is currently one of the major exporters of durians, growing 781,000 tonnes of the world's total harvest of 1,400,000 tonnes in 1999, 111,000 tonnes of which it exported to Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore and Canada. Malaysia and Indonesia follow, both producing about 265,000 tonnes each. Of this, Malaysia exported 35,000 tonnes in 1999. Chantaburi in Thailand each year holds the World Durian Festival in early May. This single province is responsible for half of the durian production of Thailand. In the Philippines, the centre of durian production is the Davao Region. The Kadayawan Festival is an annual celebration featuring the durian in Davao City. Other places where durian farms are located include Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, India, the West Indies, Florida, Hawaii, Papua New Guinea, the Polynesian Islands, Madagascar, southern China (Hainan Island), northern Australia, and Singapore.

 

Durian was introduced into Australia in the early 1960s and clonal material was first introduced in 1975. Over thirty clones of D. zibethinus and six Durio species have been subsequently introduced into Australia. China is the major importer, purchasing 65,000 tonnes in 1999, followed by Singapore with 40,000 tonnes and Taiwan with 5,000 tonnes. In the same year, the United States imported 2,000 tonnes, mostly frozen, and the European Community imported 500 tonnes.

 

The durian is a seasonal fruit, unlike some other non-seasonal tropical fruits such as the papaya, which are available throughout the year. In Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, the season for durians is typically from June to August, which coincides with that of the mangosteen. Prices of durians are relatively high as compared with other fruits. For example, in Singapore, the strong demand for high quality cultivars such as the D24, Sultan, and Mao Shan Wang has resulted in typical retail prices of between S$8 to S$15 (US$5 to US$10) per kilogram of whole fruit. With an average weight of about 1.5 kilograms, a durian fruit would therefore cost about S$12 to S$22 (US$8 to US$15). The edible portion of the fruit, known as the aril and usually referred to as the "flesh" or "pulp", only accounts for about 15–30% of the mass of the entire fruit. Many consumers in Singapore are nevertheless quite willing to spend up to around S$75 (US$50) on a single purchase of about half a dozen of the favoured fruit to be shared by family members.

 

In-season durians can be found in mainstream Japanese supermarkets, while in the West they are sold mainly by Asian markets.

 

FLAVOUR AND ODOUR

The unusual flavour and odour of the fruit have prompted many people to express diverse and passionate views ranging from deep appreciation to intense disgust. Writing in 1856, the British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace provided a much-quoted description of the flavour of the durian:

 

The five cells are silky-white within, and are filled with a mass of firm, cream-coloured pulp, containing about three seeds each. This pulp is the edible part, and its consistence and flavour are indescribable. A rich custard highly flavoured with almonds gives the best general idea of it, but there are occasional wafts of flavour that call to mind cream-cheese, onion-sauce, sherry-wine, and other incongruous dishes. Then there is a rich glutinous smoothness in the pulp which nothing else possesses, but which adds to its delicacy. It is neither acidic nor sweet nor juicy; yet it wants neither of these qualities, for it is in itself perfect. It produces no nausea or other bad effect, and the more you eat of it the less you feel inclined to stop. In fact, to eat Durians is a new sensation worth a voyage to the East to experience. ... as producing a food of the most exquisite flavour it is unsurpassed.

 

Wallace described himself as being at first reluctant to try it because of the aroma, "but in Borneo I found a ripe fruit on the ground, and, eating it out of doors, I at once became a confirmed Durian eater." He cited one traveller from 1599: "it is of such an excellent taste that it surpasses in flavour all other fruits of the world, according to those who have tasted it." He cites another writer: "To those not used to it, it seems at first to smell like rotten onions, but immediately after they have tasted it they prefer it to all other food. The natives give it honourable titles, exalt it, and make verses on it." Despite having tried many foods that are arguably more eccentric, Andrew Zimmern, host of Bizarre Foods, was unable to finish a durian upon sampling it, due to his intolerance of its strong taste.

 

While Wallace cautions that "the smell of the ripe fruit is certainly at first disagreeable", later descriptions by westerners are more graphic. Novelist Anthony Burgess writes that eating durian is "like eating sweet raspberry blancmange in the lavatory". Chef Andrew Zimmern compares the taste to "completely rotten, mushy onions". Anthony Bourdain, a lover of durian, relates his encounter with the fruit thus: "Its taste can only be described as...indescribable, something you will either love or despise. ...Your breath will smell as if you'd been French-kissing your dead grandmother." Likewise, fellow chef Jamie Oliver has also expressed admiration for the fruit on his first sampling. Travel and food writer Richard Sterling says:

 

... its odor is best described as pig-shit, turpentine and onions, garnished with a gym sock. It can be smelled from yards away. Despite its great local popularity, the raw fruit is forbidden from some establishments such as hotels, subways and airports, including public transportation in Southeast Asia.

 

Other comparisons have been made with the civet, sewage, stale vomit, skunk spray and used surgical swabs. The wide range of descriptions for the odour of durian may have a great deal to do with the variability of durian odour itself. Durians from different species or clones can have significantly different aromas; for example, red durian (D. dulcis) has a deep caramel flavour with a turpentine odour while red-fleshed durian (D. graveolens) emits a fragrance of roasted almonds. Among the varieties of D. zibethinus, Thai varieties are sweeter in flavour and less odorous than Malay ones. The degree of ripeness has an effect on the flavour as well. Three scientific analyses of the composition of durian aroma – from 1972, 1980, and 1995 – each found a mix of volatile compounds including esters, ketones, and different sulphur compounds, with no agreement on which may be primarily responsible for the distinctive odour. People in South East Asia with frequent exposures to durian are able to easily distinguish its sweet-like ketones and esters scent from rotten or putrescine odours which are from volatile amines and fatty acids. Developmental or genetic differences in olfactory perception and mapping within the brain ( for e.g. anterior piriform cortex to the orbitofrontal cortex) could possibly explain why some individuals are unable to differentiate these smells and find this fruit noxious.

 

This strong odour can be detected half a mile away by animals, thus luring them. In addition, the fruit is extremely appetising to a variety of animals, including squirrels, mouse deer, pigs, orangutan, elephants, and even carnivorous tigers. While some of these animals eat the fruit and dispose of the seed under the parent plant, others swallow the seed with the fruit and then transport it some distance before excreting, with the seed being dispersed as a result. The thorny, armoured covering of the fruit discourages smaller animals; larger animals are more likely to transport the seeds far from the parent tree.

 

RIPENESS AND SELECTION

According to Larousse Gastronomique, the durian fruit is ready to eat when its husk begins to crack. However, the ideal stage of ripeness to be enjoyed varies from region to region in Southeast Asia and by species. Some species grow so tall that they can only be collected once they have fallen to the ground, whereas most cultivars of D. zibethinus are nearly always cut from the tree and allowed to ripen while waiting to be sold. Some people in southern Thailand prefer their durians relatively young when the clusters of fruit within the shell are still crisp in texture and mild in flavour. For some people in northern Thailand, the preference is for the fruit to be soft and aromatic. In Malaysia and Singapore, most consumers prefer the fruit to be as ripe and pungent in aroma as possible and may even risk allowing the fruit to continue ripening after its husk has already cracked open. In this state, the flesh becomes richly creamy, slightly alcoholic, the aroma pronounced and the flavour highly complex.

 

The various preferences regarding ripeness among consumers make it hard to issue general statements about choosing a "good" durian. A durian that falls off the tree continues to ripen for two to four days, but after five or six days most would consider it overripe and unpalatable. The usual advice for a durian consumer choosing a whole fruit in the market is to examine the quality of the stem or stalk which loses moisture as it ages: a big, solid stem is a sign of freshness. Reportedly, unscrupulous merchants wrap, paint, or remove the stalks altogether. Due to the popularity of Kan Yao, street vendors may sometimes sell a lesser variety with a long stem to unsuspecting customers. Another frequent piece of advice is to shake the fruit and listen for the sound of the seeds moving within, indicating the durian is very ripe and the pulp has dried out a bit.

 

HISTORY

The durian has been known and consumed in Southeast Asia since prehistoric times, but has only been known to the western world for about 600 years. The earliest native reference to durian is the several bas relief panels of 9th-century Borobudur depicting durian as one of fruit offering for Javanese king, and also as one of the fruits sold in marketplace.

 

The earliest known European reference to the durian is the record of Niccolò Da Conti, who travelled to southeastern Asia in the 15th century. Translated from the Latin in which Poggio Bracciolini recorded Da Conti's travels: "They (people of Sumatra) have a green fruit which they call durian, as big as a watermelon. Inside there are five things like elongated oranges, and resembling thick butter, with a combination of flavours." The Portuguese physician Garcia de Orta described durians in Colóquios dos simples e drogas da India published in 1563. In 1741, Herbarium Amboinense by the German botanist Georg Eberhard Rumphius was published, providing the most detailed and accurate account of durians for over a century. The genus Durio has a complex taxonomy that has seen the subtraction and addition of many species since it was created by Rumphius. During the early stages of its taxonomical study, there was some confusion between durian and the soursop (Annona muricata), for both of these species had thorny green fruit. It is also interesting to note the Malay name for the soursop is durian Belanda, meaning Dutch durian. In the 18th century, Johann Anton Weinmann considered the durian to belong to Castaneae as its fruit was similar to the horse chestnut.

 

D. zibethinus was introduced into Ceylon by the Portuguese in the 16th century and was reintroduced many times later. It has been planted in the Americas but confined to botanical gardens. The first seedlings were sent from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, to Auguste Saint-Arroman of Dominica in 1884.

 

In southeastern Asia, the durian has been cultivated for centuries at the village level, probably since the late 18th century, and commercially since the mid-20th century. In My Tropic Isle, Australian author and naturalist Edmund James Banfield tells how, in the early 20th century, a friend in Singapore sent him a durian seed, which he planted and cared for on his tropical island off the north coast of Queensland.

 

In 1949, the British botanist E. J. H. Corner published The Durian Theory, or the Origin of the Modern Tree. His theory was that endozoochory (the enticement of animals to transport seeds in their stomach) arose before any other method of seed dispersal, and that primitive ancestors of Durio species were the earliest practitioners of that dispersal method, in particular red durian (D. dulcis) exemplifying the primitive fruit of flowering plants.

 

Since the early 1990s, the domestic and international demand for durian in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region has increased significantly, partly due to the increasing affluence of Asia.

 

USES

CULINARY

Durian fruit is used to flavour a wide variety of sweet edibles such as traditional Malay candy, ice kacang, dodol, lempuk, rose biscuits, and, with a touch of modern innovation, ice cream, milkshakes, mooncakes, Yule logs, and cappuccino. Es durian (durian ice cream) is a popular dessert in Indonesia, sold at street side stall in Indonesian cities, especially in Java. Pulut Durian or ketan durian is glutinous rice steamed with coconut milk and served with ripened durian. In Sabah, red durian is fried with onions and chilli and served as a side dish. Red-fleshed durian is traditionally added to sayur, an Indonesian soup made from freshwater fish. Ikan brengkes is fish cooked in a durian-based sauce, traditional in Sumatra. Traditionally Bollen pastry, specialty of Bandung is filled with banana and cheese. Today Bollen durian is also available, it is pastry filled with durian. Dried durian flesh can be made into kripik durian (durian chips).

 

Tempoyak refers to fermented durian, usually made from lower quality durian that is unsuitable for direct consumption. Tempoyak can be eaten either cooked or uncooked, is normally eaten with rice, and can also be used for making curry. Sambal Tempoyak is a Sumatran dish made from the fermented durian fruit, coconut milk, and a collection of spicy ingredients known as sambal.

 

In Thailand, durian is often eaten fresh with sweet sticky rice, and blocks of durian paste are sold in the markets, though much of the paste is adulterated with pumpkin. Unripe durians may be cooked as a vegetable, except in the Philippines, where all uses are sweet rather than savoury. Malaysians make both sugared and salted preserves from durian. When durian is minced with salt, onions and vinegar, it is called boder. The durian seeds, which are the size of chestnuts, can be eaten whether they are boiled, roasted or fried in coconut oil, with a texture that is similar to taro or yam, but stickier. In Java, the seeds are sliced thin and cooked with sugar as a confection. Uncooked durian seeds are toxic due to cyclopropene fatty acids and should not be ingested.

 

Young leaves and shoots of the durian are occasionally cooked as greens. Sometimes the ash of the burned rind is added to special cakes. The petals of durian flowers are eaten in the North Sumatra province of Indonesia, while in the Moluccas islands the husk of the durian fruit is used as fuel to smoke fish. The nectar and pollen of the durian flower that honeybees collect is an important honey source, but the characteristics of the honey are unknown.

 

NUTRITIONS AND FOLK MEDICINE

Durian fruit contains a high amount of sugar, vitamin C, potassium, and the serotonergic amino acid tryptophan, and is a good source of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. It is recommended as a good source of raw fats by several raw food advocates, while others classify it as a high-glycemic food, recommending to minimise its consumption.

 

In Malaysia, a decoction of the leaves and roots used to be prescribed as an antipyretic. The leaf juice is applied on the head of a fever patient. The most complete description of the medicinal use of the durian as remedies for fevers is a Malay prescription, collected by Burkill and Haniff in 1930. It instructs the reader to boil the roots of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis with the roots of Durio zibethinus, Nephelium longan, Nephelium mutabile and Artocarpus integrifolia, and drink the decoction or use it as a poultice.

 

In the 1920s, Durian Fruit Products, Inc., of New York City launched a product called "Dur-India" as a health food supplement, selling at US$9 for a dozen bottles, each containing 63 tablets. The tablets allegedly contained durian and a species of the genus Allium from India and vitamin E. The company promoted the supplement saying that it provides "more concentrated healthful energy in food form than any other product the world affords".

 

CUSTOMS AND BELIEFS

Southeast Asian traditional beliefs, as well as traditional Chinese medicine, consider the durian fruit to have warming properties liable to cause excessive sweating. The traditional method to counteract this is to pour water into the empty shell of the fruit after the pulp has been consumed and drink it. An alternative method is to eat the durian in accompaniment with mangosteen, which is considered to have cooling properties. Pregnant women or people with high blood pressure are traditionally advised not to consume durian.

 

Another common local belief is that the durian is harmful when eaten with coffee or alcoholic beverages. The latter belief can be traced back at least to the 18th century when Rumphius stated that one should not drink alcohol after eating durians as it will cause indigestion and bad breath. In 1929, J. D. Gimlette wrote in his Malay Poisons and Charm Cures that the durian fruit must not be eaten with brandy. In 1981, J. R. Croft wrote in his Bombacaceae: In Handbooks of the Flora of Papua New Guinea that "a feeling of morbidity" often follows the consumption of alcohol too soon after eating durian. Several medical investigations on the validity of this belief have been conducted with varying conclusions, though a study by the University of Tsukuba finds the fruit's high sulphur content inhibits the activity of aldehyde dehydrogenase, causing a 70% reduction of the ability to clear toxins from the body.

 

The Javanese believe durian to have aphrodisiac qualities, and impose a set of rules on what may or may not be consumed with it or shortly thereafter. A saying in Indonesian, durian jatuh sarung naik, meaning "the durian falls and the sarong comes up", refers to this belief. The warnings against the supposed lecherous quality of this fruit soon spread to the West – the Swedenborgian philosopher Herman Vetterling commented on so-called "erotic properties" of the durian in the early 20th century.

 

A durian falling on a person's head can cause serious injuries because it is heavy, armed with sharp thorns, and can fall from a significant height. Wearing a hardhat is recommended when collecting the fruit. Alfred Russel Wallace writes that death rarely ensues from it, because the copious effusion of blood prevents the inflammation which might otherwise take place. A common saying is that a durian has eyes and can see where it is falling because the fruit allegedly never falls during daylight hours when people may be hurt. A saying in Indonesian, ketiban durian runtuh, which translates to "getting a durian avalanche", is the equivalent of the English phrase "windfall gain". Nevertheless, signs warning people not to linger under durian trees are found in Indonesia. Strong nylon or woven rope nettings are often strung between durian trees in orchards, serving a threefold purpose: the nets aid in the collection of the mature fruits, deter ground-level scavengers, and most importantly, prevent the durians from falling onto people.

 

A naturally spineless variety of durian growing wild in Davao, Philippines, was discovered in the 1960s; fruits borne from these seeds also lacked spines. Since the bases of the scales develop into spines as the fruit matures, sometimes spineless durians are produced artificially by scraping scales off immature fruits. In Malaysia, a spinesless durian clone D172 is registered by Agriculture Department on 17 June 1989. It was called "Durian Botak" (Bald Durian). In Indonesia, Ir Sumeru Ashari, head of Durian Research Centre, Universitas Brawijaya reported spineless durian from Kasembon, Malang. Another cultivar is from Lombok, Nusa Tenggara Barat, Indonesia.

 

Animals such as Sumatran elephants are known to consume durians. Curiously, the carnivorous Sumatran tiger is also known to consume durian occasionally. The strong odour of the fallen fruits in the jungle probably attracts the tiger to inspect the fruit and lick it.

 

CULTURAL INFLUENCE

The durian is commonly known as the "King of the Fruits", a label that can be attributed to its formidable look and overpowering odour. In its native southeastern Asia, the durian is an everyday food and portrayed in the local media in accordance with the cultural perception it has in the region. The durian symbolised the subjective nature of ugliness and beauty in Hong Kong director Fruit Chan's 2000 film Durian Durian (榴槤飄飄, lau lin piu piu), and was a nickname for the reckless but lovable protagonist of the eponymous Singaporean TV comedy Durian King played by Adrian Pang. Likewise, the oddly shaped Esplanade building in Singapore is often called "The Durian" by locals, and "The Big Durian" is the nickname of Jakarta, Indonesia.

 

One of the names Thailand contributed to the list of storm names for Western North Pacific tropical cyclones was 'Durian', which was retired after the second storm of this name in 2006. Being a fruit much loved by a variety of wild beasts, the durian sometimes signifies the long-forgotten animalistic aspect of humans, as in the legend of Orang Mawas, the Malaysian version of Bigfoot, and Orang Pendek, its Sumatran version, both of which have been claimed to feast on durians.

 

Frozen whole durians are shipped from Thailand to Asian markets and Chinatowns in Western countries.

 

WIKIPEDIA

Yeahh thats KETONE. a NYC bomber

Ketones in urine, or ketonuria, as the name suggests, is characterized by the presence of ketones or ketone bodies in the urine.

 

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Testosterone

The chemical structure of testosterone.

A ball-and-stick model of testosterone.

Names

IUPAC name

17β-Hydroxyandrost-4-en-3-one

Systematic IUPAC name

(8R,9S,10R,13S,14S,17S)-17-Hydroxy-10,13-dimethyl-1,2,6,7,8,9,11,12,14,15,16,17-dodecahydrocyclopenta[a]phenanthren-3-one

Other names

Androst-4-en-17β-ol-3-one

Identifiers

CAS Number

58-22-0 ☑

3D model (JSmol)

Interactive image

ChEBI

CHEBI:17347 ☑

ChEMBL

ChEMBL386630 ☑

ChemSpider

5791 ☑

DrugBank

DB00624 ☑

ECHA InfoCard100.000.336

KEGG

D00075 ☑

PubChem CID

6013

UNII

3XMK78S47O ☑

InChI[show]

SMILES[show]

Properties

Chemical formula

C19H28O2

Molar mass288.431 g·mol−1

Melting point155 °C

Pharmacology

ATC code

G03BA03 (WHO)

License data

EU EMA: by INN

Routes of

administration

Transdermal (gel, cream, solution, patch), by mouth (as testosterone undecanoate), in the cheek, intranasal (gel), intramuscular injection (as esters), subcutaneous pellets

Pharmacokinetics:

Bioavailability

Oral: very low (due to extensive first pass metabolism)

Protein binding

97.0–99.5% (to SHBG and albumin)[1]

Metabolism

Liver (mainly reduction and conjugation)

Biological half-life

2–4 hours[citation needed]

Excretion

Urine (90%), feces (6%)

Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa).

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Infobox references

Testosterone is the primary male sex hormone and an anabolic steroid. In male humans, testosterone plays a key role in the development of male reproductive tissues such as testes and prostate, as well as promoting secondary sexual characteristics such as increased muscle and bone mass, and the growth of body hair.[2] In addition, testosterone is involved in health and well-being,[3] and the prevention of osteoporosis.[4] Insufficient levels of testosterone in men may lead to abnormalities including frailty and bone loss.

 

Testosterone is a steroid from the androstane class containing a keto and hydroxyl groups at the three and seventeen positions respectively. It is biosynthesized in several steps from cholesterol and is converted in the liver to inactive metabolites.[5] It exerts its action through binding to and activation of the androgen receptor.[5] In humans and most other vertebrates, testosterone is secreted primarily by the testicles of males and, to a lesser extent, the ovaries of females. On average, in adult males, levels of testosterone are about 7 to 8 times as great as in adult females.[6] As the metabolism of testosterone in males is more pronounced, the daily production is about 20 times greater in men.[7][8] Females are also more sensitive to the hormone.[9]

 

In addition to its role as a natural hormone, testosterone is used as a medication, for instance in the treatment of low testosterone levels in men and breast cancer in women.[10] Since testosterone levels decrease as men age, testosterone is sometimes used in older men to counteract this deficiency. It is also used illicitly to enhance physique and performance, for instance in athletes.

  

Contents

1Biological effects

1.1Before birth

1.2Early infancy

1.3Before puberty

1.4Pubertal

1.5Adult

1.6Aggression and criminality

1.7Brain

2Medical use

3Biological activity

3.1Steroid hormone activity

3.2Neurosteroid activity

4Biochemistry

4.1Biosynthesis

4.2Distribution

4.3Metabolism

4.4Levels

5Measurement

6History

7Other animals

8See also

9References

10Further reading

Biological effects[edit]

In general, androgens such as testosterone promote protein synthesis and thus growth of tissues with androgen receptors.[11] Testosterone can be described as having virilising and anabolic effects (though these categorical descriptions are somewhat arbitrary, as there is a great deal of mutual overlap between them).[12]

 

Anabolic effects include growth of muscle mass and strength, increased bone density and strength, and stimulation of linear growth and bone maturation.

Androgenic effects include maturation of the sex organs, particularly the penis and the formation of the scrotum in the fetus, and after birth (usually at puberty) a deepening of the voice, growth of facial hair (such as the beard) and axillary (underarm) hair. Many of these fall into the category of male secondary sex characteristics.

Testosterone effects can also be classified by the age of usual occurrence. For postnatal effects in both males and females, these are mostly dependent on the levels and duration of circulating free testosterone.

 

Before birth[edit]

Effects before birth are divided into two categories, classified in relation to the stages of development.

 

The first period occurs between 4 and 6 weeks of the gestation. Examples include genital virilisation such as midline fusion, phallic urethra, scrotal thinning and rugation, and phallic enlargement; although the role of testosterone is far smaller than that of dihydrotestosterone. There is also development of the prostate gland and seminal vesicles.

 

During the second trimester, androgen level is associated with sex formation.[13] This period affects the femininization or masculinization of the fetus and can be a better predictor of feminine or masculine behaviours such as sex typed behaviour than an adult's own levels. A mother's testosterone level during pregnancy is correlated with her daughter's sex-typical behavior as an adult, and the correlation is even stronger than with the daughter's own adult testosterone level.[14]

 

Early infancy[edit]

Early infancy androgen effects are the least understood. In the first weeks of life for male infants, testosterone levels rise. The levels remain in a pubertal range for a few months, but usually reach the barely detectable levels of childhood by 4–7 months of age.[15][16] The function of this rise in humans is unknown. It has been theorized that brain masculinization is occurring since no significant changes have been identified in other parts of the body.[17] The male brain is masculinized by the aromatization of testosterone into estrogen, which crosses the blood–brain barrier and enters the male brain, whereas female fetuses have α-fetoprotein, which binds the estrogen so that female brains are not affected.[18]

 

Before puberty[edit]

Before puberty effects of rising androgen levels occur in both boys and girls. These include adult-type body odor, increased oiliness of skin and hair, acne, pubarche (appearance of pubic hair), axillary hair (armpit hair), growth spurt, accelerated bone maturation, and facial hair.[19]

 

Pubertal[edit]

Pubertal effects begin to occur when androgen has been higher than normal adult female levels for months or years. In males, these are usual late pubertal effects, and occur in women after prolonged periods of heightened levels of free testosterone in the blood. The effects include:[19][20]

 

Growth of spermatogenic tissue in testicles, male fertility, penis or clitoris enlargement, increased libido and frequency of erection or clitoral engorgement occurs. Growth of jaw, brow, chin, and nose and remodeling of facial bone contours, in conjunction with human growth hormone occurs.[21] Completion of bone maturation and termination of growth. This occurs indirectly via estradiol metabolites and hence more gradually in men than women. Increased muscle strength and mass, shoulders become broader and rib cage expands, deepening of voice, growth of the Adam's apple. Enlargement of sebaceous glands. This might cause acne, subcutaneous fat in face decreases. Pubic hair extends to thighs and up toward umbilicus, development of facial hair (sideburns, beard, moustache), loss of scalp hair (androgenetic alopecia), increase in chest hair, periareolar hair, perianal hair, leg hair, armpit hair.

 

Adult[edit]

Testosterone is necessary for normal sperm development. It activates genes in Sertoli cells, which promote differentiation of spermatogonia. It regulates acute HPA (hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis) response under dominance challenge.[22] Androgen including testosterone enhances muscle growth. Testosterone also regulates the population of thromboxane A2 receptors on megakaryocytes and platelets and hence platelet aggregation in humans.[23][24]

 

Adult testosterone effects are more clearly demonstrable in males than in females, but are likely important to both sexes. Some of these effects may decline as testosterone levels might decrease in the later decades of adult life.[25]

 

Health risks[edit]

Testosterone does not appear to increase the risk of developing prostate cancer. In people who have undergone testosterone deprivation therapy, testosterone increases beyond the castrate level have been shown to increase the rate of spread of an existing prostate cancer.[26][27][28]

 

Conflicting results have been obtained concerning the importance of testosterone in maintaining cardiovascular health.[29][30] Nevertheless, maintaining normal testosterone levels in elderly men has been shown to improve many parameters that are thought to reduce cardiovascular disease risk, such as increased lean body mass, decreased visceral fat mass, decreased total cholesterol, and glycemic control.[31]

 

High androgen levels are associated with menstrual cycle irregularities in both clinical populations and healthy women.[32]

 

Sexual arousal[edit]

See also: Hormones and sexual arousal

When testosterone and endorphins in ejaculated semen meet the cervical wall after sexual intercourse, females receive a spike in testosterone, endorphin, and oxytocin levels, and males after orgasm during copulation experience an increase in endorphins and a marked increase in oxytocin levels. This adds to the hospitable physiological environment in the female internal reproductive tract for conceiving, and later for nurturing the conceptus in the pre-embryonic stages, and stimulates feelings of love, desire, and paternal care in the male (this is the only time male oxytocin levels rival a female's).[citation needed]

 

Testosterone levels follow a nyctohemeral rhythm that peaks early each day, regardless of sexual activity.[33]

 

There are positive correlations between positive orgasm experience in women and testosterone levels where relaxation was a key perception of the experience. There is no correlation between testosterone and men's perceptions of their orgasm experience, and also no correlation between higher testosterone levels and greater sexual assertiveness in either sex.[34]

 

Sexual arousal and masturbation in women produce small increases in testosterone concentrations.[35] The plasma levels of various steroids significantly increase after masturbation in men and the testosterone levels correlate to those levels.[36]

 

Mammalian studies[edit]

Studies conducted in rats have indicated that their degree of sexual arousal is sensitive to reductions in testosterone. When testosterone-deprived rats were given medium levels of testosterone, their sexual behaviors (copulation, partner preference, etc.) resumed, but not when given low amounts of the same hormone. Therefore, these mammals may provide a model for studying clinical populations among humans suffering from sexual arousal deficits such as hypoactive sexual desire disorder.[37]

 

In every mammalian species examined demonstrated a marked increase in a male's testosterone level upon encountering a novel female. The reflexive testosterone increases in male mice is related to the male's initial level of sexual arousal.[38]

 

In non-human primates, it may be that testosterone in puberty stimulates sexual arousal, which allows the primate to increasingly seek out sexual experiences with females and thus creates a sexual preference for females.[39] Some research has also indicated that if testosterone is eliminated in an adult male human or other adult male primate's system, its sexual motivation decreases, but there is no corresponding decrease in ability to engage in sexual activity (mounting, ejaculating, etc.).[39]

 

In accordance with sperm competition theory, testosterone levels are shown to increase as a response to previously neutral stimuli when conditioned to become sexual in male rats.[40] This reaction engages penile reflexes (such as erection and ejaculation) that aid in sperm competition when more than one male is present in mating encounters, allowing for more production of successful sperm and a higher chance of reproduction.

 

Males[edit]

In men, higher levels of testosterone are associated with periods of sexual activity.[41][42]

 

Men who watch a sexually explicit movie have an average increase of 35% in testosterone, peaking at 60–90 minutes after the end of the film, but no increase is seen in men who watch sexually neutral films.[43] Men who watch sexually explicit films also report increased motivation, competitiveness, and decreased exhaustion.[44] A link has also been found between relaxation following sexual arousal and testosterone levels.[45]

 

Men's levels of testosterone, a hormone known to affect men's mating behaviour, changes depending on whether they are exposed to an ovulating or nonovulating woman's body odour. Men who are exposed to scents of ovulating women maintained a stable testosterone level that was higher than the testosterone level of men exposed to nonovulation cues. Testosterone levels and sexual arousal in men are heavily aware of hormone cycles in females.[46] This may be linked to the ovulatory shift hypothesis,[47] where males are adapted to respond to the ovulation cycles of females by sensing when they are most fertile and whereby females look for preferred male mates when they are the most fertile; both actions may be driven by hormones.

 

Females[edit]

Androgens may modulate the physiology of vaginal tissue and contribute to female genital sexual arousal.[48] Women's level of testosterone is higher when measured pre-intercourse vs pre-cuddling, as well as post-intercourse vs post-cuddling.[49] There is a time lag effect when testosterone is administered, on genital arousal in women. In addition, a continuous increase in vaginal sexual arousal may result in higher genital sensations and sexual appetitive behaviors.[50]

 

When females have a higher baseline level of testosterone, they have higher increases in sexual arousal levels but smaller increases in testosterone, indicating a ceiling effect on testosterone levels in females. Sexual thoughts also change the level of testosterone but not level of cortisol in the female body, and hormonal contraceptives may affect the variation in testosterone response to sexual thoughts.[51]

 

Testosterone may prove to be an effective treatment in female sexual arousal disorders,[52] and is available as a dermal patch. There is no FDA approved androgen preparation for the treatment of androgen insufficiency; however, it has been used off-label to treat low libido and sexual dysfunction in older women. Testosterone may be a treatment for postmenopausal women as long as they are effectively estrogenized.[52]

 

Romantic relationships[edit]

Falling in love decreases men's testosterone levels while increasing women's testosterone levels. There has been speculation that these changes in testosterone result in the temporary reduction of differences in behavior between the sexes.[53] However, it is suggested that after the "honeymoon phase" ends—about four years into a relationship—this change in testosterone levels is no longer apparent.[53] Men who produce less testosterone are more likely to be in a relationship[54] or married,[55] and men who produce more testosterone are more likely to divorce;[55] however, causality cannot be determined in this correlation. Marriage or commitment could cause a decrease in testosterone levels.[56] Single men who have not had relationship experience have lower testosterone levels than single men with experience. It is suggested that these single men with prior experience are in a more competitive state than their non-experienced counterparts.[57] Married men who engage in bond-maintenance activities such as spending the day with their spouse/and or child have no different testosterone levels compared to times when they do not engage in such activities. Collectively, these results suggest that the presence of competitive activities rather than bond-maintenance activities are more relevant to changes in testosterone levels.[58]

 

Men who produce more testosterone are more likely to engage in extramarital sex.[55] Testosterone levels do not rely on physical presence of a partner; testosterone levels of men engaging in same-city and long-distance relationships are similar.[54] Physical presence may be required for women who are in relationships for the testosterone–partner interaction, where same-city partnered women have lower testosterone levels than long-distance partnered women.[59]

 

Fatherhood[edit]

Fatherhood decreases testosterone levels in men, suggesting that the emotions and behavior tied to decreased testosterone promote paternal care. In humans and other species that utilize allomaternal care, paternal investment in offspring is beneficial to said offspring's survival because it allows the parental dyad to raise multiple children simultaneously. This increases the reproductive fitness of the parents, because their offspring are more likely to survive and reproduce. Paternal care increases offspring survival due to increased access to higher quality food and reduced physical and immunological threats.[60] This is particularly beneficial for humans since offspring are dependent on parents for extended periods of time and mothers have relatively short inter-birth intervals.[61] While extent of paternal care varies between cultures, higher investment in direct child care has been seen to be correlated with lower average testosterone levels as well as temporary fluctuations.[62] For instance, fluctuation in testosterone levels when a child is in distress has been found to be indicative of fathering styles. If a father's testosterone levels decrease in response to hearing their baby cry, it is an indication of empathizing with the baby. This is associated with increased nurturing behavior and better outcomes for the infant.[63]

 

Motivation[edit]

Testosterone levels play a major role in risk-taking during financial decisions.[64][65]

 

Aggression and criminality [edit]

See also: Aggression § Testosterone, and Biosocial criminology

Most studies support a link between adult criminality and testosterone, although the relationship is modest if examined separately for each sex. Nearly all studies of juvenile delinquency and testosterone are not significant. Most studies have also found testosterone to be associated with behaviors or personality traits linked with criminality such as antisocial behavior and alcoholism. Many studies have also been done on the relationship between more general aggressive behavior/feelings and testosterone. About half the studies have found a relationship and about half no relationship.[66]

 

Testosterone is only one of many factors that influence aggression and the effects of previous experience and environmental stimuli have been found to correlate more strongly. A few studies indicate that the testosterone derivative estradiol (one form of estrogen) might play an important role in male aggression.[66][67][68][69] Studies have also found that testosterone facilitates aggression by modulating vasopressin receptors in the hypothalamus.[70]

 

The sexual hormone can encourage fair behavior. For the study, subjects took part in a behavioral experiment where the distribution of a real amount of money was decided. The rules allowed both fair and unfair offers. The negotiating partner could subsequently accept or decline the offer. The fairer the offer, the less probable a refusal by the negotiating partner. If no agreement was reached, neither party earned anything. Test subjects with an artificially enhanced testosterone level generally made better, fairer offers than those who received placebos, thus reducing the risk of a rejection of their offer to a minimum. Two later studies have empirically confirmed these results.[71][72][73] However men with high testosterone were significantly 27% less generous in an ultimatum game.[74] The Annual NY Academy of Sciences has also found anabolic steroid use which increase testosterone to be higher in teenagers, and this was associated with increased violence.[75] Studies have also found administered testosterone to increase verbal aggression and anger in some participants.[76]

 

Testosterone is significantly correlated with aggression and competitive behaviour and is directly facilitated by the latter. There are two theories on the role of testosterone in aggression and competition.[77] The first one is the challenge hypothesis which states that testosterone would increase during puberty thus facilitating reproductive and competitive behaviour which would include aggression.[77] Thus it is the challenge of competition among males of the species that facilitates aggression and violence.[77] Studies conducted have found direct correlation between testosterone and dominance especially among the most violent criminals in prison who had the highest testosterone levels.[77] The same research also found fathers (those outside competitive environments) had the lowest testosterone levels compared to other males.[77]

 

The second theory is similar and is known as "evolutionary neuroandrogenic (ENA) theory of male aggression".[78][79] Testosterone and other androgens have evolved to masculinize a brain in order to be competitive even to the point of risking harm to the person and others. By doing so, individuals with masculinized brains as a result of pre-natal and adult life testosterone and androgens enhance their resource acquiring abilities in order to survive, attract and copulate with mates as much as possible.[78] The masculinization of the brain is not just mediated by testosterone levels at the adult stage, but also testosterone exposure in the womb as a fetus. Higher pre-natal testosterone indicated by a low digit ratio as well as adult testosterone levels increased risk of fouls or aggression among male players in a soccer game.[80] Studies have also found higher pre-natal testosterone or lower digit ratio to be correlated with higher aggression in males.[81][82][83][84][85]

 

The rise in testosterone levels during competition predicted aggression in males but not in females.[86] Subjects who interacted with hand guns and an experimental game showed rise in testosterone and aggression.[87] Natural selection might have evolved males to be more sensitive to competitive and status challenge situations and that the interacting roles of testosterone are the essential ingredient for aggressive behaviour in these situations.[88] Testosterone produces aggression by activating subcortical areas in the brain, which may also be inhibited or suppressed by social norms or familial situations while still manifesting in diverse intensities and ways through thoughts, anger, verbal aggression, competition, dominance and physical violence.[89] Testosterone mediates attraction to cruel and violent cues in men by promoting extended viewing of violent stimuli.[90] Testosterone specific structural brain characteristic can predict aggressive behaviour in individuals.[91]

 

Estradiol is known to correlate with aggression in male mice.[92] Moreover, the conversion of testosterone to estradiol regulates male aggression in sparrows during breeding season.[93] Rats who were given anabolic steroids that increase testosterone were also more physically aggressive to provocation as a result of "threat sensitivity".[94]

 

Brain[edit]

The brain is also affected by this sexual differentiation;[13] the enzyme aromatase converts testosterone into estradiol that is responsible for masculinization of the brain in male mice. In humans, masculinization of the fetal brain appears, by observation of gender preference in patients with congenital diseases of androgen formation or androgen receptor function, to be associated with functional androgen receptors.[95]

 

There are some differences between a male and female brain (possibly the result of different testosterone levels), one of them being size: the male human brain is, on average, larger.[96] Men were found to have a total myelinated fiber length of 176 000 km at the age of 20, whereas in women the total length was 149 000 km (approx. 15% less).[97]

 

No immediate short term effects on mood or behavior were found from the administration of supraphysiologic doses of testosterone for 10 weeks on 43 healthy men.[98] A correlation between testosterone and risk tolerance in career choice exists among women.[64][99]

 

Attention, memory, and spatial ability are key cognitive functions affected by testosterone in humans. Preliminary evidence suggests that low testosterone levels may be a risk factor for cognitive decline and possibly for dementia of the Alzheimer's type,[100][101][102][103] a key argument in life extension medicine for the use of testosterone in anti-aging therapies. Much of the literature, however, suggests a curvilinear or even quadratic relationship between spatial performance and circulating testosterone,[104] where both hypo- and hypersecretion (deficient- and excessive-secretion) of circulating androgens have negative effects on cognition.

 

Medical use[edit]

Main article: Testosterone (medication)

Testosterone is used as a medication for the treatment of males with too little or no natural testosterone production, certain forms of breast cancer,[10] and gender dysphoria in transgender men. This is known as hormone replacement therapy (HRT) or testosterone replacement therapy (TRT), which maintains serum testosterone levels in the normal range. Decline of testosterone production with age has led to interest in androgen replacement therapy.[105] It is unclear if the use of testosterone for low levels due to aging is beneficial or harmful.[106]

 

Testosterone is included in the World Health Organization's list of essential medicines, which are the most important medications needed in a basic health system.[107] It is available as a generic medication.[10] The price depends on the form of testosterone used.[108] It can be administered as a cream or transdermal patch that is applied to the skin, by injection into a muscle, as a tablet that is placed in the cheek, or by ingestion.[10]

 

Common side effects from testosterone medication include acne, swelling, and breast enlargement in males.[10] Serious side effects may include liver toxicity, heart disease, and behavioral changes.[10] Women and children who are exposed may develop virilization.[10] It is recommended that individuals with prostate cancer not use the medication.[10] It can cause harm if used during pregnancy or breastfeeding.[10]

 

Biological activity[edit]

Steroid hormone activity[edit]

The effects of testosterone in humans and other vertebrates occur by way of multiple mechanisms: by activation of the androgen receptor (directly or as DHT), and by conversion to estradiol and activation of certain estrogen receptors.[109][110] Androgens such as testosterone have also been found to bind to and activate membrane androgen receptors.[111][112][113]

 

Free testosterone (T) is transported into the cytoplasm of target tissue cells, where it can bind to the androgen receptor, or can be reduced to 5α-dihydrotestosterone (DHT) by the cytoplasmic enzyme 5α-reductase. DHT binds to the same androgen receptor even more strongly than testosterone, so that its androgenic potency is about 5 times that of T.[114] The T-receptor or DHT-receptor complex undergoes a structural change that allows it to move into the cell nucleus and bind directly to specific nucleotide sequences of the chromosomal DNA. The areas of binding are called hormone response elements (HREs), and influence transcriptional activity of certain genes, producing the androgen effects.

 

Androgen receptors occur in many different vertebrate body system tissues, and both males and females respond similarly to similar levels. Greatly differing amounts of testosterone prenatally, at puberty, and throughout life account for a share of biological differences between males and females.

 

The bones and the brain are two important tissues in humans where the primary effect of testosterone is by way of aromatization to estradiol. In the bones, estradiol accelerates ossification of cartilage into bone, leading to closure of the epiphyses and conclusion of growth. In the central nervous system, testosterone is aromatized to estradiol. Estradiol rather than testosterone serves as the most important feedback signal to the hypothalamus (especially affecting LH secretion).[115] In many mammals, prenatal or perinatal "masculinization" of the sexually dimorphic areas of the brain by estradiol derived from testosterone programs later male sexual behavior.[116]

 

Neurosteroid activity[edit]

Testosterone, via its active metabolite 3α-androstanediol, is a potent positive allosteric modulator of the GABAA receptor.[117]

 

Testosterone has been found to act as an antagonist of the TrkA and p75NTR, receptors for the neurotrophin nerve growth factor (NGF), with high affinity (around 5 nM).[118][119][120] In contrast to testosterone, DHEA and DHEA sulfate have been found to act as high-affinity agonists of these receptors.[118][119][120]

 

Testosterone is an antagonist of the sigma σ1 receptor (Ki = 1,014 or 201 nM).[121] However, the concentrations of testosterone required for binding the receptor are far above even total circulating concentrations of testosterone in adult males (which range between 10 and 35 nM).[122]

 

Biochemistry[edit]

 

Human steroidogenesis, showing testosterone near bottom.[123]

Biosynthesis[edit]

Like other steroid hormones, testosterone is derived from cholesterol (see figure).[124] The first step in the biosynthesis involves the oxidative cleavage of the side-chain of cholesterol by cholesterol side-chain cleavage enzyme (P450scc, CYP11A1), a mitochondrial cytochrome P450 oxidase with the loss of six carbon atoms to give pregnenolone. In the next step, two additional carbon atoms are removed by the CYP17A1 (17α-hydroxylase/17,20-lyase) enzyme in the endoplasmic reticulum to yield a variety of C19 steroids.[125] In addition, the 3β-hydroxyl group is oxidized by 3β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase to produce androstenedione. In the final and rate limiting step, the C17 keto group androstenedione is reduced by 17β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase to yield testosterone.

 

The largest amounts of testosterone (>95%) are produced by the testes in men,[2] while the adrenal glands account for most of the remainder. Testosterone is also synthesized in far smaller total quantities in women by the adrenal glands, thecal cells of the ovaries, and, during pregnancy, by the placenta.[126] In the testes, testosterone is produced by the Leydig cells.[127] The male generative glands also contain Sertoli cells, which require testosterone for spermatogenesis. Like most hormones, testosterone is supplied to target tissues in the blood where much of it is transported bound to a specific plasma protein, sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG).

 

Regulation[edit]

 

Hypothalamic–pituitary–testicular axis

In males, testosterone is synthesized primarily in Leydig cells. The number of Leydig cells in turn is regulated by luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH). In addition, the amount of testosterone produced by existing Leydig cells is under the control of LH, which regulates the expression of 17β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase.[128]

 

The amount of testosterone synthesized is regulated by the hypothalamic–pituitary–testicular axis (see figure to the right).[129] When testosterone levels are low, gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) is released by the hypothalamus, which in turn stimulates the pituitary gland to release FSH and LH. These latter two hormones stimulate the testis to synthesize testosterone. Finally, increasing levels of testosterone through a negative feedback loop act on the hypothalamus and pituitary to inhibit the release of GnRH and FSH/LH, respectively.

 

Factors affecting testosterone levels may include:

 

Age: Testosterone levels gradually reduce as men age.[130][131] This effect is sometimes referred to as andropause or late-onset hypogonadism.[132]

Exercise: Resistance training increases testosterone levels,[133] however, in older men, that increase can be avoided by protein ingestion.[134] Endurance training in men may lead to lower testosterone levels.[135]

Nutrients: Vitamin A deficiency may lead to sub-optimal plasma testosterone levels.[136] The secosteroid vitamin D in levels of 400–1000 IU/d (10–25 µg/d) raises testosterone levels.[137] Zinc deficiency lowers testosterone levels[138] but over-supplementation has no effect on serum testosterone.[139]

Weight loss: Reduction in weight may result in an increase in testosterone levels. Fat cells synthesize the enzyme aromatase, which converts testosterone, the male sex hormone, into estradiol, the female sex hormone.[140] However no clear association between body mass index and testosterone levels has been found.[141]

Miscellaneous: Sleep: (REM sleep) increases nocturnal testosterone levels.[142] Behavior: Dominance challenges can, in some cases, stimulate increased testosterone release in men.[143] Drugs: Natural or man-made antiandrogens including spearmint tea reduce testosterone levels.[144][145][146] Licorice can decrease the production of testosterone and this effect is greater in females.[147]

Distribution[edit]

The plasma protein binding of testosterone is 98.0 to 98.5%, with 1.5 to 2.0% free or unbound.[148] It is bound 65% to sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) and 33% bound weakly to albumin.[149]

 

Plasma protein binding of testosterone and dihydrotestosterone show

Metabolism[edit]

vte Testosterone metabolism in humans

Testosterone structures

The image above contains clickable linksTestosterone metabolism in humans. Conjugation (sulfation and glucuronidation) occurs both with testosterone and with all of the other steroids that have one or more available hydroxyl (-OH) groups in this diagram.

Both testosterone and 5α-DHT are metabolized mainly in the liver.[1][151] Approximately 50% of testosterone is metabolized via conjugation into testosterone glucuronide and to a lesser extent testosterone sulfate by glucuronosyltransferases and sulfotransferases, respectively.[1] An additional 40% of testosterone is metabolized in equal proportions into the 17-ketosteroids androsterone and etiocholanolone via the combined actions of 5α- and 5β-reductases, 3α-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase, and 17β-HSD, in that order.[1][151][152] Androsterone and etiocholanolone are then glucuronidated and to a lesser extent sulfated similarly to testosterone.[1][151] The conjugates of testosterone and its hepatic metabolites are released from the liver into circulation and excreted in the urine and bile.[1][151][152] Only a small fraction (2%) of testosterone is excreted unchanged in the urine.[151]

 

In the hepatic 17-ketosteroid pathway of testosterone metabolism, testosterone is converted in the liver by 5α-reductase and 5β-reductase into 5α-DHT and the inactive 5β-DHT, respectively.[1][151] Then, 5α-DHT and 5β-DHT are converted by 3α-HSD into 3α-androstanediol and 3α-etiocholanediol, respectively.[1][151] Subsequently, 3α-androstanediol and 3α-etiocholanediol are converted by 17β-HSD into androsterone and etiocholanolone, which is followed by their conjugation and excretion.[1][151] 3β-Androstanediol and 3β-etiocholanediol can also be formed in this pathway when 5α-DHT and 5β-DHT are acted upon by 3β-HSD instead of 3α-HSD, respectively, and they can then be transformed into epiandrosterone and epietiocholanolone, respectively.[153][154] A small portion of approximately 3% of testosterone is reversibly converted in the liver into androstenedione by 17β-HSD.[152]

 

In addition to conjugation and the 17-ketosteroid pathway, testosterone can also be hydroxylated and oxidized in the liver by cytochrome P450 enzymes, including CYP3A4, CYP3A5, CYP2C9, CYP2C19, and CYP2D6.[155] 6β-Hydroxylation and to a lesser extent 16β-hydroxylation are the major transformations.[155] The 6β-hydroxylation of testosterone is catalyzed mainly by CYP3A4 and to a lesser extent CYP3A5 and is responsible for 75 to 80% of cytochrome P450-mediated testosterone metabolism.[155] In addition to 6β- and 16β-hydroxytestosterone, 1β-, 2α/β-, 11β-, and 15β-hydroxytestosterone are also formed as minor metabolites.[155][156] Certain cytochrome P450 enzymes such as CYP2C9 and CYP2C19 can also oxidize testosterone at the C17 position to form androstenedione.[155]

 

Two of the immediate metabolites of testosterone, 5α-DHT and estradiol, are biologically important and can be formed both in the liver and in extrahepatic tissues.[151] Approximately 5 to 7% of testosterone is converted by 5α-reductase into 5α-DHT, with circulating levels of 5α-DHT about 10% of those of testosterone, and approximately 0.3% of testosterone is converted into estradiol by aromatase.[2][151][157][158] 5α-Reductase is highly expressed in the male reproductive organs (including the prostate gland, seminal vesicles, and epididymides),[159] skin, hair follicles, and brain[160] and aromatase is highly expressed in adipose tissue, bone, and the brain.[161][162] As much as 90% of testosterone is converted into 5α-DHT in so-called androgenic tissues with high 5α-reductase expression,[152] and due to the several-fold greater potency of 5α-DHT as an AR agonist relative to testosterone,[163] it has been estimated that the effects of testosterone are potentiated 2- to 3-fold in such tissues.[164]

 

Levels[edit]

Total levels of testosterone in the body are 264 to 916 ng/dL in men age 19 to 39 years,[165] while mean testosterone levels in adult men have been reported as 630 ng/dL.[166] Levels of testosterone in men decline with age.[165] In women, mean levels of total testosterone have been reported to be 32.6 ng/dL.[167][168] In women with hyperandrogenism, mean levels of total testosterone have been reported to be 62.1 ng/dL.[167][168]

 

Testosterone levels in males and females show

Total testosterone levels in males throughout life show

 

Reference ranges for blood tests, showing adult male testosterone levels in light blue at center-left.

Measurement[edit]

Testosterone’s bioavailable concentration is commonly determined using the Vermeulen calculation or more precisely using the modified Vermeulen method,[174][175] which considers the dimeric form of sex-hormone-binding-globulin.[176]

 

Both methods use chemical equilibrium to derive the concentration of bioavailable testosterone: in circulation testosterone has two major binding partners, albumin (weakly bound) and sex-hormone-binding-globulin (strongly bound). These methods are described in detail in the accompanying figure.

  

Dimeric sex-hormone-binding-globulin with its testosterone ligands

  

Two methods for determining concentration of bioavailable testosterone.

History[edit]

A testicular action was linked to circulating blood fractions – now understood to be a family of androgenic hormones – in the early work on castration and testicular transplantation in fowl by Arnold Adolph Berthold (1803–1861).[177] Research on the action of testosterone received a brief boost in 1889, when the Harvard professor Charles-Édouard Brown-Séquard (1817–1894), then in Paris, self-injected subcutaneously a "rejuvenating elixir" consisting of an extract of dog and guinea pig testicle. He reported in The Lancet that his vigor and feeling of well-being were markedly restored but the effects were transient,[178] and Brown-Séquard's hopes for the compound were dashed. Suffering the ridicule of his colleagues, he abandoned his work on the mechanisms and effects of androgens in human beings.

 

In 1927, the University of Chicago's Professor of Physiologic Chemistry, Fred C. Koch, established easy access to a large source of bovine testicles — the Chicago stockyards — and recruited students willing to endure the tedious work of extracting their isolates. In that year, Koch and his student, Lemuel McGee, derived 20 mg of a substance from a supply of 40 pounds of bovine testicles that, when administered to castrated roosters, pigs and rats, remasculinized them.[179] The group of Ernst Laqueur at the University of Amsterdam purified testosterone from bovine testicles in a similar manner in 1934, but isolation of the hormone from animal tissues in amounts permitting serious study in humans was not feasible until three European pharmaceutical giants—Schering (Berlin, Germany), Organon (Oss, Netherlands) and Ciba (Basel, Switzerland)—began full-scale steroid research and development programs in the 1930s.

  

Nobel Prize winner, Leopold Ruzicka of Ciba, a pharmaceutical industry giant that synthesized testosterone.

The Organon group in the Netherlands were the first to isolate the hormone, identified in a May 1935 paper "On Crystalline Male Hormone from Testicles (Testosterone)".[180] They named the hormone testosterone, from the stems of testicle and sterol, and the suffix of ketone. The structure was worked out by Schering's Adolf Butenandt, at the Chemisches Institut of Technical University in Gdańsk.[181][182]

 

The chemical synthesis of testosterone from cholesterol was achieved in August that year by Butenandt and Hanisch.[183] Only a week later, the Ciba group in Zurich, Leopold Ruzicka (1887–1976) and A. Wettstein, published their synthesis of testosterone.[184] These independent partial syntheses of testosterone from a cholesterol base earned both Butenandt and Ruzicka the joint 1939 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.[182][185] Testosterone was identified as 17β-hydroxyandrost-4-en-3-one (C19H28O2), a solid polycyclic alcohol with a hydroxyl group at the 17th carbon atom. This also made it obvious that additional modifications on the synthesized testosterone could be made, i.e., esterification and alkylation.

 

The partial synthesis in the 1930s of abundant, potent testosterone esters permitted the characterization of the hormone's effects, so that Kochakian and Murlin (1936) were able to show that testosterone raised nitrogen retention (a mechanism central to anabolism) in the dog, after which Allan Kenyon's group[186] was able to demonstrate both anabolic and androgenic effects of testosterone propionate in eunuchoidal men, boys, and women. The period of the early 1930s to the 1950s has been called "The Golden Age of Steroid Chemistry",[187] and work during this period progressed quickly. Research in this golden age proved that this newly synthesized compound—testosterone—or rather family of compounds (for many derivatives were developed from 1940 to 1960), was a potent multiplier of muscle, strength, and well-being.[188]

 

Other animals[edit]

Testosterone is observed in most vertebrates. Testosterone and the classical nuclear androgen receptor first appeared in gnathostomes (jawed vertebrates).[189] Agnathans (jawless vertebrates) such as lampreys do not produce testosterone but instead use androstenedione as a male sex hormone.[190] Fish make a slightly different form called 11-ketotestosterone.[191] Its counterpart in insects is ecdysone.[192] The presence of these ubiquitous steroids in a wide range of animals suggest that sex hormones have an ancient evolutionary history.[193]

 

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Testosterone

Milling my first ketometer. Excited to get regular ketone readings from acetone on my breath rather than expensive blood ketone strips. #ketogenic #ketosis #ketone #breath #sensor

 

8 Likes on Instagram

  

Our Daily Challenge 25-31 July :Surrounded

Here is the gushing description from the makers

"The fragrance is sensual and bold floral - chypre. It is created by perfumer Mathilde Laurent from central notes of gardenia and animalistic musk. The top of the composition exudes greenish - fruity mixture in the form of molecule styrallyl acetates, containing nuances of rhubarb, strawberries, dried fruit, apple and apricot. The heart is dominated by gardenia, selected as the main flower to avoid excessive oriental character and also as not so common ingredient amongst modern perfumes. Ketone musk and oak moss provide irrefutable chypre character.

 

The simple luxurious bottle of golden colors shows stylized face of panther, which gives the entire design a special signature and character. The face of the campaign is a model Erin Wasson, known for his cat-like facial features and boho style. "

Mephedrone, also known as 4-methylmethcathinone (4-MMC) or 4-methylephedrone, is a synthetic stimulant drug of the amphetamine and cathinone classes. Slang names include drone,[5] M-CAT,[6] and meow meow.[7] It is chemically similar to the cathinone compounds found in the khat plant of eastern Africa. It comes in the form of tablets or a powder, which users can swallow, snort or inject, producing similar effects to MDMA, amphetamines and cocaine.

 

In addition to its stimulant effects, mephedrone produces side effects, of which teeth grinding is the most common. The metabolism of mephedrone has been studied in rats and humans and the metabolites can be detected in urine after usage. Despite similarities to known neurotoxins such as methamphetamine and cathinone derivatives, mephedrone does not appear to produce neurotoxic effects in the dopamine system of mice.[8]

 

Mephedrone was first synthesised in 1929, but did not become widely known until it was rediscovered in 2003. By 2007, mephedrone was reported to be available for sale on the internet, by 2008 law enforcement agencies had become aware of the compound, and by 2010, it had been reported in most of Europe, becoming particularly prevalent in the United Kingdom. Mephedrone was first made illegal in Israel in 2008, followed by Sweden later that year. In 2010, it was made illegal in many European countries and in December 2010, the EU ruled it illegal. In Australia, New Zealand and the USA, it is considered an analog of other illegal drugs and can be controlled by laws similar to the Federal Analog Act. In September 2011, the USA temporarily classified mephedrone as illegal, in effect from October 2011.

Mephedrone is one of hundreds of designer drugs or legal highs that have been reported in recent years, including artificial chemicals such as synthetic cannabis and semisynthetic substances such as methylhexanamine. These drugs are primarily developed to avoid being controlled by laws against illegal drugs, thus giving them the label of designer drugs.[9] According to the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction, the synthesis of mephedrone was first reported in 1929 by Saem de Burnaga Sanchez in the Bulletin de la Société Chimique de France, under the name "toluyl-alpha-monomethylaminoethylcetone",[1]:17[10] but the compound remained an obscure product of academia until 2003, when it was "re-discovered" and publicised by an underground chemist on The Hive website, working under the pseudonym "Kinetic".[11] Kinetic posted on the site, "I’ve been bored over the last couple of days and had a few fun reagents lying around, so I thought I’d try and make some 1-(4-methylphenyl)-2-methylaminopropanone hydrochloride, or 4-methylmethcathinone." before going on to describe that after taking it, the user had a "fantastic sense of well-being that I haven’t got from any drug before except my beloved Ecstasy."[12] In interviews Kinetic was described as "a mathematician who used to design sleeping pills for a major pharmaceutical company" and he stated that he was based in Israel when he rediscovered mephedrone.[13][14]

 

A drug similar to mephedrone, containing cathinone, was sold legally in Israel from around 2004, under the name hagigat. When this was made illegal, the cathinone was modified and the new products were sold by the Israeli company, Neorganics.[15][16][17] The products had names such as Neodoves pills, but the range was discontinued in January 2008 after the Israeli government made mephedrone illegal.[5][18][19] The Psychonaut Research Project, an EU organisation that searches the internet for information regarding new drugs, first identified mephedrone in 2008. Their research suggested the drug first became available to purchase on the internet in 2007, when it was also discussed on internet forums.[9][20] Mephedrone was first seized in France in May 2007, after police sent a tablet they assumed to be ecstasy to be analysed, with the discovery published in a paper titled "Is 4-methylephedrone, an "Ecstasy" of the twenty first century?"[21] Mephedrone was reported as having been sold as ecstasy in the Australian city of Cairns, along with ethylcathinone, in 2008.[22][23] An annual survey of regular ecstasy users in Australia in 2010 found 21% of those surveyed had used mephedrone, with 17% having done so in the previous six months. The price they paid per gram varied from A$16 to $320.[3]

 

Europol noted they became aware of it in 2008, after it was found in Denmark, Finland and the UK.[24] The Drug Enforcement Administration noted it was present in the United States in July 2009.[25] By May 2010, mephedrone had been detected in all 22 EU member states that reported to Europol, as well as in Croatia and Norway.[1]:21 The Daily Telegraph reported in April 2009 that it was manufactured in China, but it has since been made illegal there.[26][27] In March 2009, Druglink magazine reported it only cost a "couple of hundred pounds" to synthesise a kilogram of mephedrone,[15] the same month, The Daily Telegraph reported manufacturers were making "huge amounts of money" from selling it.[28] In January 2010, Druglink magazine reported dealers in Britain spent £2,500 to ship one kilogram from China, but could sell it for £10 a gram, making a profit of £7,500.[12][29] A later report, in March 2010, stated the wholesale price of mephedrone was £4000 per kilogram.[30]

 

In March 2011, the International Narcotics Control Board published a report about designer drugs, noting mephedrone was by then being used recreationally in Europe, North America, Southeast Asia, New Zealand and Australia.[31][32]

 

In the UK[edit]

 

The number of samples analysed by the Forensic Science Service of seized MDMA, piperazines and cathinones between the third quarter of 2005 and the first quarter of 2010: MDMA seizures in blue, piperazine seizures in orange and cathinone seizures in purple[33]

Between the summer of 2009 and March 2010, the use of mephedrone grew rapidly in the UK, with it becoming readily available at music festivals, head shops and on the internet.[34] A survey of Mixmag readers in 2009, found it was the fourth most popular street drug in the United Kingdom, behind cannabis, cocaine, and ecstasy.[30] The drug was used by a diverse range of social groups. Whilst the evidence was anecdotal, researchers, charity workers, teachers and users reported widespread and increasing use of the drug in 2009. The drug's rapid growth in popularity was believed to be related to both its availability and legality.[34]

 

Fiona Measham, a criminologist at The University of Lancaster, thought the emergence of mephedrone was also related to the decreasing purity of ecstasy and cocaine on sale in the UK,[34] a view reinforced in a report by the National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse.[35] The average cocaine purity fell from 60% in 1999 to 22% in 2009 and about half of ecstasy pills seized in 2009 contained no MDMA,[36] and by June 2010 almost all ecstasy pills seized in the UK contained no MDMA.[37] A similar pattern was observed in the Netherlands, with the number of ecstasy tablets containing no MDMA rising from 10% in mid-2008 to 60% by mid-2009, with mephedrone being detected in 20% of ecstasy tablets by mid-2009.[38] The decrease of MDMA was thought to be partly due to the seizure of 33 tonnes of sassafras oil, the precursor to MDMA, in Cambodia in June 2008, which could have been used to make 245 million doses of MDMA.[12] According to John Ramsey, a toxicologist at St George's, University of London, the emergence of mephedrone was also related to the UK government banning the benzylpiperazine class of drugs in December 2009.[15][39] gamma-Butyrolactone (GBL), another previously "legal high", was also banned in August 2009 despite concerns it would be replaced by other drugs.[40]

 

By December 2009 mephedrone was available on at least 31 websites based in the UK and by March 2010 there were at least 78 online shops, half of which sold amounts of less than 200 grams and half that also sold bulk quantities. The price per gram varied from £9.50 to £14.[1]:11 Between July 2009 and February 2010, UK health professionals accessed the National Poisons Information Service '​s (NPIS) entry on mephedrone 1664 times and made 157 telephone inquiries; the requests increased month on month over this period. In comparison over a similar time period, the entries for cocaine and MDMA were accessed approximately 2400 times.[41] After mephedrone was made illegal the number of inquiries to the NPIS fell substantially, to only 19 in June 2010.[42]

 

Media organisations including the BBC and The Guardian incorrectly reported mephedrone was commonly used as a plant fertiliser. In fact sellers of the drug described it as "plant food" because it was illegal to sell the compound for human consumption.[36] In late 2009 UK newspapers began referring to the drug as meow or miaow (sometimes doubled as meow meow or miaow miaow), a name that was almost unknown on the street at the time.[43] In November 2009, the tabloid newspaper, The Sun published a story stating that a man had ripped off his own scrotum whilst using mephedrone.[44] The story was later shown to be an online joke posted on mephedrone.com, later included in a police report with the caveat that it could be unreliable. The police report was used as a source for the story in The Sun.[45][46] Other myths the media often repeated during 2010 were that mephedrone had led to the deaths of over 20 people, teachers were unable to confiscate the drug from pupils and the government was too slow to ban the drug.[47] Parallels were drawn between the media coverage of mephedrone and a piece of satire by Chris Morris in 1997 on Brass Eye when he tricked public figures into talking of the dangers of taking the fictional legal drug "cake".[46] The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) have suggested that the media coverage of the drug led to its increased usage.[48] Jon Silverman, a former BBC Home Affairs Correspondent, has written two articles discussing how the media had a strong influence over the UK government's drugs policy, particularly in that the government wished to demonstrate they were being "tough" on drugs.[40][49]

 

A survey of 1000 secondary school pupils and university students in Tayside conducted in February 2010 found 20% of them had previously taken mephedrone. Although at the time it was available legally over the internet, only 10% of users reported purchasing it online, with most purchasing it from street dealers. Of those who had used mephedrone, 97% said it was easy or very easy to obtain. Around 50% of users reported at least one negative effect associated with the use of mephedrone, of which teeth grinding is the most common.[50] Detailed interviews with users in Northern Ireland similarly found that few purchased mephedrone online, with most interviewees citing concerns that their address would be traced or that family members could intercept the package.[9]

 

On 30 March 2010, Alan Johnson, the then Home Secretary, announced mephedrone would be made illegal "within weeks" after the ACMD sent him a report on the use of cathinones.[51][52] The legislation would make all cathinones illegal, which Johnson said would "stop unscrupulous manufacturers and others peddling different but similarly harmful drugs".[53] The ACMD had run into problems with the UK Government in 2009 regarding drugs policy, after the government did not follow the advice of the ACMD to reclassify ecstasy and cannabis, culminating in the dismissal of the ACMD chairman, David Nutt, after he reiterated the ACMD's findings in an academic lecture.[54] Several members resigned after he was sacked, and prior to the announcement that mephedrone was to be banned, the trend continued when Dr Polly Taylor resigned, saying she "did not have trust" in the way the government would use the advice given by the ACMD.[55] Eric Carlin, a member of the ACMD and former chairman of the English Drug Education Forum, also resigned after the announcement. He said the decision by the Home Secretary was "unduly based on media and political pressure" and there was "little or no discussion about how our recommendation to classify this drug would be likely to impact on young people's behaviour."[56] Some former members of the ACMD and various charity groups expressed concern over the banning of the drug, arguing it would inevitably criminalise users, particularly young people.[57] Others expressed concern that the drug would be left in the hands of black market dealers, who will only compound the problem.[58] Carlin's resignation was specifically linked to the criminalisation of mephedrone, he stated: "We need to review our entire approach to drugs, dumping the idea that legally-sanctioned punishments for drug users should constitute a main part of the armoury in helping to solve our country’s drug problems. We need to stop harming people who need help and support".[59]

 

The parliamentary debate was held on 8 April, one day after the 2010 general election had been announced, meaning it was during the so-called "wash-up period" when legislation is passed with little scrutiny. Only one hour was spent debating the ban and all three parties agreed, meaning no vote was required.[60] In an interview conducted in July 2010, when he was no longer a minister, Johnson admitted the decision to ban mephedrone was sped up after widespread reporting of deaths caused by the drug, and because the government wished to pass the law before parliament was dissolved prior to the upcoming general election.[40] In January 2011, however, Johnson told the Scunthorpe Telegraph that the decision was based only on information from the ACMD.[61] An editorial in the April 2010 edition of The Lancet questioned the decision to ban mephedrone, saying the ACMD did not have enough evidence to judge the potential harms caused by mephedrone and arguing that policy makers should have sought to understand why young people took it and how they could be influenced to not take it.[48] Evan Harris, then the Liberal Democrat science spokesman, stated the ACMD "was not 'legally constituted'" as required by the Misuse of Drugs Act, when the report on cathinones was published, since after Taylor resigned, it lacked a veterinary surgeon.[53] In the rush to make mephedrone illegal, the act that was passed specified the inactive enantiomer of mephedrone, leaving the active form legal until the loophole was closed in February 2011 by another act of parliament.[62] In Chemistry World, John Mann, professor of chemistry at Queen's University Belfast, suggested the UK create a law similar to the Federal Analog Act of the United States, which would have made mephedrone illegal as an analog of cathinone.[63] In August 2010, James Brokenshire, the Home Office drugs minister, announced plans to create a new category in the Misuse of Drugs Act, through the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Bill, that would allow new legal highs to be made temporarily illegal, without the need for a vote in parliament or advice from the ACMD, as was required to categorise mephedrone.[64][65][66]

 

According to the Independent Scientific Committee on Drugs, after mephedrone was made illegal, a street trade in the drug emerged, with prices around double those prior to the ban, at £20–£25 per gram.[67] In September 2010, Druglink reported the ban had had a mixed effect on mephedrone use, with it decreasing in some areas, remaining similar in others and becoming more prevalent in some areas.[68] In an online survey of 150 users after the ban, 63% said they were continuing to use mephedrone, half of those used the same amount and half said they used less. Compared to previous surveys, more users purchased it from dealers, rather than the internet. The average price per gram was £16, compared to around £10 before the ban.[69] The 2010 Mixmag survey of 2500 nightclubbers found one-quarter had used mephedrone in the previous month, the price had roughly doubled since it was made illegal, and it was more likely to be cut with other substances.[70] Of those who had already used mephedrone prior to the ban, 75% had continued to use it after the ban. Of the various drugs used by the survey participants, users were more likely to have concerns about it.[71] Interviews with users in Northern Ireland also found the price had roughly doubled since it was made illegal, to around £30 a gram. Rather than the price rising due to increased scarcity of the drug, it is thought to have risen for two other reasons. Firstly, dealers knew there was still demand for mephedrone, but were aware the supplies may be exhausted in the future. Secondly, the dealers perceived customers were likely to be willing to pay more for an illegal substance.[9]

 

Professor Shiela Bird, a statistician at the Medical Research Council, suggested the ban of mephedrone may lead to more cocaine-related deaths. In the first six months of 2009, the number of cocaine-related deaths fell for the first time in four years, and fewer soldiers tested positive for cocaine in 2009 than in 2008. She suggested this may have been due to users switching to mephedrone from cocaine, but cautioned that before full figures are available for 2009 and 2010, it will be difficult to determine whether mephedrone saved lives, rather than cost them.[72][73] Other supposedly legal drugs have filled the gap in the market since mephedrone was made illegal, including naphyrone (NRG-1) (since made illegal)[74] and Ivory Wave, which has been found to contain MDPV, a compound made illegal at the same time as mephedrone. However, some products branded as Ivory Wave possibly do not contain MDPV.[75] When tested, some products sold six weeks after mephedrone was banned, advertised as NRG-1, NRG-2 and MDAI, were found to be mephedrone.[76] A Drugscope survey of drugs workers at the end of 2012 reported that mephedrone use was still widespread in the UK and that there increasing reports of problematic users. It was being taken as not only a "poor man's cocaine" but also amongst users of heroin and crack cocaine. Cases of intravenous use were also reported to be on the increase.[77]

 

Effects[edit]

No formal published studies have been conducted into the psychological and/or behavioural effects of mephedrone on humans, nor on animals (from which the potential effects might be extrapolated). As a result, the only information available comes from users themselves and clinical reports of acute mephedrone toxicity.[1]:12 Psychologists at Liverpool John Moores University were to conduct research into the effects of mephedrone on up to 50 students already using the drug, when it was still legal in the UK.[78] At the time the study was proposed, Les Iversen, the chair of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs called the experiments "pretty unethical".[79] The study was discontinued in August 2010, following the change in the legal status of the drug.[80]

 

Intended effects[edit]

Users have reported that mephedrone causes euphoria, stimulation, an enhanced appreciation for music, an elevated mood, decreased hostility, improved mental function and mild sexual stimulation; these effects are similar to the effects of cocaine, amphetamines and MDMA, and last different amounts of time, depending on the way the drug is taken. When taken orally, users reported they could feel the effects within 15–45 minutes; when snorted, the effects were felt within minutes and peaked within half an hour. The effects last for between two and three hours when taken orally or nasally, but only half an hour if taken intravenously.[1]:12 Of 70 Dutch users of mephedrone, 58 described it as an overall pleasant experience and 12 described it as an unpleasant experience.[38] In a survey of UK users who had previously taken cocaine, most users found it produced a better-quality and longer-lasting high, was less addictive and carried the same risk as using cocaine.[2]

 

Side effects[edit]

The ECMDDA reported mephedrone can cause various unintended side effects including: dilated pupils,[81] poor concentration, teeth grinding, problems focusing visually, poor short-term memory, hallucinations, delusions, and erratic behaviour.[1]:13 They noted the most severe effects appear anecdotally to be linked with high doses or prolonged usage, and the effects may be due to users taking other intoxicants at the same time. Other effects users in internet forums have noted include changes in body temperature, increased heart rate, breathing difficulties, loss of appetite, increased sweating, discolouration of extremities, anxiety, paranoia and depression.[1]:13 When snorted, it can also cause nose bleeds and nose burns.[1]:13[82] A survey conducted by the National Addiction Centre, UK, found 67% of mephedrone users experienced sweating, 51% suffered from headaches, 43% from heart palpitations, 27% from nausea and 15% from cold or blue fingers,[83] indicative of vasoconstriction occurring.[41] Doctors at Guy's Hospital, London reported, of 15 patients they treated after taking mephedrone in 2009, 53% were agitated, 40% had increased heart rates, 20% had systolic hypertension and 20% had seizures; three required treatment with benzodiazepines, predominantly to control their agitation. They reported none of their patients suffered from cold or blue peripheries, contrary to other reports. Nine of the 15 of patients had a Glasgow coma scale (GCS) of 15, indicating they were in a normal mental state, four had a GCS below 8, but these patients all reported using a central nervous system depressant, most commonly GHB, with mephedrone. The patients also reported polydrug use of a variety of compounds.[84]

 

Long-term effects[edit]

Almost nothing is known about the long-term effects of the drug due to the short history of its use.[83] BBC News reported one person who used the drug for 18 months became dependent on the drug, in the end using it twice a week, and had to be admitted to a psychiatric unit after he started experiencing hallucinations, agitation, excitability and mania.[1]:13[85]

 

Typical use and consumption[edit]

Mephedrone can come in the form of capsules, tablets or white powder that users may swallow, snort, inject, smoke or use rectally.[1]:12[2][3] It is sometimes sold mixed with methylone in a product called bubbles in the UK[86] and also mixed with other cathinones, including ethcathinone, butylone, fluoromethcathinone and methedrone.[1]:9 The Guardian reported some users compulsively redose, consuming their whole supply when they only meant to use a small dose,[87] and there have been other similar reports of users craving mephedrone, suggesting it may be addictive.[1]:13[38] A survey conducted in late 2009 by the National Addiction Centre (UK) found 41.3% of readers of Mixmag had used mephedrone in the last month, making it the fourth most popular drug amongst clubbers. Of those, two-thirds snorted the drug and the average dosage per session was 0.9 g; the length of sessions increased as the dosage increased. Users who snorted the drug reported using more per session than those who took it orally (0.97 g compared to 0.74 g) and also reported using it more often (five days per month compared to three days per month).[2] An Irish study of people on a methadone treatment program for heroin addicts found 29 of 209 patients tested positive for mephedrone usage.[88] A study of users in Northern Ireland found they did not equate the fact that mephedrone was legal with it being safe to use. This was contrary to another study in New Zealand, where users of benzylpiperazine thought that because it was legal, it was safe.[9]

 

Harm reduction[edit]

See also: Harm reduction and Responsible drug use

The drugs advice charity Lifeline recommends that to reduce the potential harm caused by using mephedrone, users should only use mephedrone occasionally (less than weekly), use less than 0.5 g per session, dose orally rather than snorting the drug, and avoid mixing it with alcohol and other drugs. Users should also drink plenty of water at sensible intervals while taking the drug, as it causes dehydration.[89]

 

Pharmacology[edit]

The pharmacology and toxicology of mephedrone had not been studied in detail until well after its sale as a designer drug and its addition to controlled drug lists in many countries.[90][91] Writing in the British Medical Journal, psychiatrists stated, given its chemical structure, "mephedrone is likely to stimulate the release of, and then inhibit the reuptake of monoamine neurotransmitters".[81] The cathinone derivatives methcathinone and methylone act in a similar way to amphetamines, mainly acting on catecholamine transporters, so mephedrone is expected also to act in this way. The actions of amphetamines and cathinones are determined by the differences in how they bind to noradrenalin, dopamine and serotonin transporters.[90] Molecular modelling of mephedrone suggests it is more hydrophilic than methyl-amphetamines, which may account for the higher doses required to achieve a similar effect, because mephedrone is less able to cross the blood–brain barrier.[1]:12[92] Mephedrone has a chiral centre, so exists in two forms, called enantiomers; the S form is thought to be more potent than the R form, because this applies to cathinone.[90] Professor David Nutt, former chair of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) in the UK has said, "people are better off taking ecstasy or amphetamines than those [drugs] we know nothing about" and "Who knows what's in [mephedrone] when you buy it? We don't have a testing system. It could be very dangerous, we just don't know. These chemicals have never been put into animals, let alone humans."[93] Les King, a former member of the ACMD, has stated mephedrone appears to be less potent than amphetamine and ecstasy, but that any benefit associated with this could be negated by users taking larger amounts. He also told the BBC, "all we can say is [mephedrone] is probably as harmful as ecstasy and amphetamines and wait until we have some better scientific evidence to support that."[94]

 

Several articles published near the end of 2011 examined the effects of mephedrone, compared to the similar drugs MDMA and amphetamine in the nucleus accumbens of rats, as well as examining the reinforcing potential of mephedrone. Dopamine and serotonin were collected using microdialysis, and increases in dopamine and serotonin were measured using HPLC. Reward and drug seeking are linked to increases in dopamine concentrations in the nucleus accumbens, and drug half-life plays a role in drug seeking, as well. Based on histological examination, most of the author's probes were in the nucleus accumbens shell. Mephedrone administration caused about a 500% increase in dopamine, and about a 950% increase in serotonin. They reached their peak concentrations at 40 minutes and 20 minutes, respectively, and returned to baseline by 120 minutes after injection. In comparison, MDMA caused a roughly 900% increase in serotonin at 40 minutes, with an insignificant increase in dopamine. Amphetamine administration resulted in about a 400% increase in dopamine, peaking at 40 minutes, with an insignificant increase in serotonin. Analysis of the ratio of the AUC for dopamine (DA) and serotonin (5-HT) indicated mephedrone was preferentially a serotonin releaser, with a ratio of 1.22:1 (serotonin vs. dopamine). Additionally, half-lives for the decrease in DA and 5-HT were calculated for each drug. Mephedrone had decay rates of 24.5 minutes and 25.5 minutes, respectively. MDMA had decay values of 302.5 minutes and 47.9 minutes, respectively, while amphetamine values were 51 minutes and 84.1 minutes, respectively. Taken together, these findings show mephedrone induces a massive increase in both DA and 5-HT, combined with rapid clearance. The rapid rise and subsequent fall of DA levels could explain some of the addictive properties mephedrone displays in some users.[95][96]

 

Metabolism[edit]

Based on the analysis of rat and human urine by gas chromatography and mass spectrometry, mephedrone is thought to be metabolised by three phase 1 pathways. It can be demethylated to the primary amine (producing compounds 2, 3 and 5), the ketone group can be reduced (producing 3) or the tolyl group can be oxidised (producing 6). Both 5 and 6 are thought to be further metabolised by conjugation to the glucuronide and sulfate derivatives. Knowledge of the primary routes of metabolism should allow the intake of mephedrone to be confirmed by drug tests, as well as more accurate determination of the causes of side effects and potential for toxicity.[97]

 

Deaths[edit]

Sweden[edit]

In 2008, an 18-year-old Swedish woman died in Stockholm after taking mephedrone. The newspaper Svenska Dagbladet reported the woman went into convulsions and turned blue in the face.[104] Doctors reported she was comatose and suffering from hyponatremia and severe hypokalemia; the woman died one and a half days after the onset of symptoms. An autopsy showed severe brain swelling.[105] Mephedrone was scheduled to be classified as a "dangerous substance" in Sweden even before the woman's death at Karolinska University Hospital on 14 December, but the death brought more media attention to the drug. The possession of mephedrone became classified as a criminal offence in Sweden on 15 December 2008.[104]

 

UK[edit]

In 2010, unconfirmed reports speculated about the role mephedrone has played in the deaths of several young people in the UK. By July 2010, mephedrone had been alleged to be involved in 52 fatalities in the UK, but detected in only 38 of these cases. Of the nine that coroners had finished investigating, two were caused directly by mephedrone.[106] The first death reported to be caused by mephedrone use was that of 46-year-old, John Sterling Smith,[107] who had underlying health problems and repeatedly injected the drug.[108] A report in Forensic Science International in August 2010 stated mephedrone intoxication has been recorded as the cause of death in two cases in Scotland. Post mortem samples showed the concentration of mephedrone in their blood was 22 mg/l in one case and 3.3 mg/l in the other.[109] The death of a teenager in the UK in November 2009 was widely reported as being caused by mephedrone, but a report by the coroner concluded she had died from natural causes.[46] In March 2010, the deaths of two teenagers in Scunthorpe were widely reported by the media to be caused by mephedrone. Toxicology reports showed the teenagers had not taken any mephedrone and had died as a result of consuming alcohol and the heroin substitute methadone.[108][110] According to Fiona Measham, a criminologist who is a member of the ACMD, the reporting of the unconfirmed deaths by newspapers followed "the usual cycle of ‘exaggeration, distortion, inaccuracy and sensationalism'" associated with the reporting of recreational drug use.[34]

 

USA[edit]

Mephedrone has been implicated in the death of a 22-year-old male, who had also injected black tar heroin. Mephedrone was found in his blood at a concentration of 0.50 mg/l and in his urine at a concentration of 198 mg/l. The blood concentration of morphine, a metabolite of heroin, was 0.06 mg/l.[111] For comparison, the average blood morphine concentration resulting from deadly overdoses involving only heroin is around 0.34 mg/l.[112]

 

Chemistry[edit]

Appearance[edit]

Mephedrone is a white substance. It is sold most commonly as crystals or a powder, but also in the form of capsules or pills.[21][94] It can have a distinctive odour, reported to range from a synthetic fishy smell[113] to the smell of vanilla and bleach, stale urine, or electric circuit boards.[114]

 

Synthesis[edit]

Mephedrone can be synthesised in several ways. The simplest method, due to the availability of the compounds,[1]:17 is to add 4-methylpropiophenone dissolved in glacial acetic acid to bromine, creating an oil fraction of 4'-methyl-2-bromopropiophenone. The oil fraction can then be dissolved in dichloromethane (CH2Cl2) and drops of the solution added to another solution of CH2Cl2-containing methylamine hydrochloride and triethylamine. Hydrochloric acid (HCl) is then added and the aqueous layer is removed and turned alkaline using sodium hydroxide before the amine is extracted using CH2Cl2. The CH2Cl2 is then evaporated using a vacuum, creating an oil which is then dissolved in a nonaqueous ether. Finally, HCl gas is bubbled through the mixture to produce 4-methylmethcathinone hydrochloride.[18] This method produces a mixture of both enantiomers and requires similar knowledge to that required to synthesise amphetamines and MDMA.[1]:17

  

Mephedrone synthesis scheme from 4-methylpropiophenone

It can also be produced by oxidising the ephedrine analogue 4-methylephedrine using potassium permanganate dissolved in sulfuric acid. Because 4-methylephedrine can be obtained in a specific enantiomeric form, mephedrone consisting of only one enantiomer can be produced. The danger associated with this method is it may cause manganese poisoning if the product is not correctly purified.[1]:17

 

A stereospecific form of (S)-mephedrone could be prepared via Friedel–Crafts acylation. The first step in the synthesis would be to react toluene and (S)-N-trifluoroacetylalanoyl chloride in the presence of aluminium chloride, then deprotect the intermediate with hydrochloric acid-propyl alcohol. This would produce (S)-4-methylcathinone, which could then be methylated to produce mephedrone.[90][115]

 

Purity[edit]

One published study that analysed samples of mephedrone bought using the internet in the UK in 2010 found it was racemic (a mixture of both stereoisomers) and of high purity.[92] An unpublished study of six samples also ordered off the internet in the UK in 2010 found they contained very few organic impurities.[116] Four products sold in Irish head shops were tested in 2010 and were found to contain between 82% and 14% mephedrone, with some products containing benzocaine and caffeine.[117]

 

Legal status[edit]

 

A sample of mephedrone that was confiscated in Oregon, USA, 2009

When mephedrone was rediscovered in 2003, it was not specifically illegal to possess in any country. As its use has increased, many countries have passed legislation making its possession, sale, and manufacture illegal. It was first made illegal in Israel, where it had been found in products such as Neodoves pills, in January 2008.[5] After the death of a young woman in Sweden in December 2008 was linked to the use of mephedrone, it was classified as a hazardous substance a few days later, making it illegal to sell in Sweden. In June 2009, it was classified as a narcotic with the possession of 15 grams or more resulting in a minimum of two years in prison – a longer sentence, gram for gram than given for the possession of cocaine or heroin.[118][119] In December 2008, Denmark also made it illegal[120] and through the Medicines Act of Finland, it was made illegal to possess without a prescription.[121] In November 2009, it was classified as a "narcotic or psychotropic" substance and added to the list of controlled substances in Estonia[122] and made illegal to import into Guernsey along with other legal highs,[123] before being classified as a Class B drug in April 2010.[124] It was classified as a Class C drug in Jersey in December 2009.[125]

 

In 2010, as its use became more prevalent, many countries passed legislation prohibiting mephedrone. It became illegal in Croatia[126] and Germany[127] in January, followed by Romania[128] and the Isle of Man in February.[129] In March 2010, it was classified as an unregulated medicine in the Netherlands, making the sale and distribution of it illegal.[130][131] The importation of mephedrone into the UK was banned on 29 March 2010.[132] The next day, the ACMD in the UK published a report on the cathinones, including mephedrone, and recommended they be classified as Class B drugs. On 7 April 2010, the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 (Amendment) Order 2010 was passed by parliament, making mephedrone and other substituted cathinones, Class B drugs from 16 April 2010.[133][134] Prior to the ban taking effect, mephedrone was not covered by the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971.[26] It was, though, an offence under the Medicines Act to sell it for human consumption, so it was often sold as "plant food" or "bath salts", although it has no use as these products; this, too, was possibly illegal under the Trade Descriptions Act 1968.[52][82][83] In the USA, similar descriptions have been used to describe mephedrone, as well as methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV).[135] In May 2010, the Republic of Ireland made mephedrone illegal,[136][137][138] followed by Belgium,[139] Italy,[140] Lithuania,[141] France[142][143] and Norway[144] in June and Russia in July.[145] In August 2010, Austria[146] and Poland[147] made it illegal and China announced it would be illegal as of 1 September 2010.[27] Mephedrone had been reported to be used in Singapore in February 2010,[148] but it was made illegal in November 2010.[149] In December 2010, following the advice of the EMCDDA, mephedrone was made illegal throughout the EU, a move Switzerland also made shortly afterwards.[150][151] Countries which have not already banned it, such as the Netherlands, Greece and Portugal, will need to change legislation to comply with the EU ruling.[151] In Hungary, a government advisory body recommended mephedrone should be made illegal in August 2010, which was followed, making it illegal in January 2011;[152][153] Spain followed in February 2011.[154] Mexico, by Decree,[155] outlawed mephedrone as a substance "with low or no therapeutical use which pose a serious threat to public health"[156] in 2014.

 

In some countries, mephedrone is not specifically listed as illegal, but is controlled under legislation that makes compounds illegal if they are analogs of drugs already listed. In Australia during 2010, it was not specifically listed as prohibited,[18] but the Australian Federal Police stated it is an analogue to methcathinone and therefore illegal. In February 2010, 22 men were arrested in connection with importing mephedrone.[157] By January 2011, every state in Australia, other than Victoria, had listed it as a controlled drug.[158] In New Zealand, it is not included in the Misuse of Drugs Act 1975,[159] but is illegal, as it is similar to controlled substances.[160] In Canada, mephedrone is not explicitly listed in any schedule of the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, but "amphetamines, their salts, derivatives, isomers and analogues and salts of derivatives, isomers and analogues" are included in Section 19 of Schedule I of the act. Cathinone and methcathinone are listed in separate sections of Schedule III, while diethylpropion and pyrovalerone (also cathinones), are listed in separate sections of Schedule IV, each without language to capture analogues, isomers, etc.[161] Mephedrone is considered a controlled substance by Health Canada.[162] According to the Canadian Medical Association, mephedrone is grouped with other amphetamines as Schedule I controlled substances.[163] There have been several media reports of the Canadian police seizing mephedrone.[164][165][166] Mephedrone is also currently scheduled in the United States as of 2011. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) states, as an analogue of methcathinone, possession of mephedrone can be controlled by the Federal Analog Act, but according to the Los Angeles Times, this only applies if it is sold for human consumption.[167][168][169] Several cities and states, such as New York,[170] have passed legislation to specifically list mephedrone as illegal, but in most areas it was legal, so long as it is not sold for human consumption, so retailers described it as 'bath salts'.[169] In September 2011, The DEA began using its emergency scheduling authority to temporarily control mephedrone. Except as authorized by law, this action made possessing and selling mephedrone or the products that contain it illegal in the USA for at least one year while the DEA and the United States Department of Health and Human Services conduct further study.[171] Control of these compounds became permanent on 9 July 2012, via passage of the Synthetic Drug Abuse Prevention Act of 2012.[172]

 

Almost ready! #DIY breath #ketometer PCB milling. #ketogenic #ketosis #keto #ketones #pcb #cnc #milling

 

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Candid street shot Barcelona, Spain.

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In the context of some religions, temptation is the inclination to sin. Temptation also describes the coaxing or inducing a person into committing such an act, by manipulation or otherwise of curiosity, desire or fear of loss.

  

The temptation of Christ is detailed in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. According to these texts, after being baptised by John the Baptist, Jesus fasted for forty days and nights in the Judaean Desert. During this time, Satan appeared to Jesus and tried to tempt him. Jesus having refused each temptation, the devil then departed and Jesus returned to Galilee.

 

The devil tempts Jesus to:

 

Make bread out of stones to relieve his own hunger.

 

Jump from a pinnacle and rely on angels to break his fall.

 

Worship the devil in return for all the kingdoms of the world.

 

Fasting traditionally presaged a great spiritual struggle. Elijah and Moses in the Old Testament fasted 40 days and nights, and thus Jesus doing the same invites comparison to these events. In Judaism, "the practice of fasting connected the body and its physical needs with less tangible values, such as self-denial, and repentance."

 

At the time, 40 was less a specific number and more a general expression for any large figure.

 

Fasting may not mean a complete abstinence from food; consequently, Jesus may have been surviving on the sparse food that could be obtained in the desert.

  

Now the science: --

 

Did Jesus see Satan or was it a result of confusion due to starvation ?

 

Unlikely, the human body is cleverly designed to cope with food shortages and consequent starvation.

 

The human body can go without oxygen for about five to ten minutes, and about three to eight days without water. But remarkably, people have been known to live upwards of 70 days without food.

 

The human starvation response is unique among animals in that human brains do not require the ingestion of glucose to function. During starvation, less than half the energy used by the brain comes from metabolised glucose. Because the human brain can use ketone bodies as major fuel sources, the body is not forced to break down skeletal muscles at a high rate, thereby maintaining both cognitive function and mobility for up to several weeks. This response is extremely important in human evolution and allowed for humans to continue to find food effectively even in the face of prolonged starvation

 

Ordinarily, the body responds to reduced energy intake by burning fat reserves and consuming muscle and other tissues. Specifically, the body burns fat after first exhausting the contents of the digestive tract along with glycogen reserves stored in muscle and liver cells. After prolonged periods of starvation, the body will utilise the proteins within muscle tissue as a fuel source. People who practise fasting on a regular basis, such as those adhering to energy restricted diets, can prime their bodies to abstain from food while reducing the amount of muscle burned.

 

During the Irish Hunger Strikes of 1981, for example, ten men survived without food (drinking only water) for periods ranging from 46 to 73 days.

 

To think that human life can be sustained for that length of time without food is nothing short of remarkable — a feat of biological engineering that's the result of millions of years of painstaking and painful evolution,

(Well that or God had a pretty good design team working on humans).

 

PS:

Lamb of God (sometimes abbreviated as LoG) is an American heavy metal band from Richmond, Virginia. Formed in 1994

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Study now shows that Lowcarb High Meat diets are linked to Dementia. Eating an Atkins style diet of meat, bacon, steak, etc can result in becoming demented.

 

Steak and barbequed meats have now been traced to throat cancer, and cancer of the human butt. (Put "Meat Colorectal Caner" into google and look if you don't believe it).

 

Ladies... An experiment was done about Body Odor, it turned out if your husband, or boyfriend, or your date is a big meat-eater, he'll tend to have horrible wretched body odor. Women rated vegetarian men "more attractive" and had less putrid B.O. The reason is meat is acidic and contains Sulphurus compounds (think of Egg burps). In fact, if you thought the old myth about legumes (beans) leading to gas, that was found false too! It turns out that's mainly meat-eaters as well!

 

What happens is, that you have different bacteria living in your gut. Meat eaters grow an offensive type of bacteria in their stomachs and intestines called Bacterioides. When you become a vegetarian, these offensive gut bacteria change and go away. Since decayed meat is not there to grow it. So after becoming a vegetarian your BO and smell changes for the better. And also, vegetarians now increase the proper enzymes and (good) bacteria that can properly digest all the baked beans you eat without the same level of smell or much more gas at all! In other words, vegetarians and vegans who eat beans don't have any problem. It's meat eaters who generate horrendous fart gasses that contain the horrible rotten egg sulphurus smells that make you cringe. Meat eaters blame the vegetables or vegans or the beans, but it's really them.

 

You see, meat and steak comes from cows that have diseases. So livestock farmers also shoot these cattle up with Antibiotics. In fact, the meat industry is consuming a whopping 70%+ of the world's pharmaceuticalgrade antibiotics! These are taken away from the resources that could be used to save and help human beings.

 

In other words, instead of medicines going to help children, or poor people, or humans, livestock farmers are using up 70% of the world's supply of medicines and antibiotics that are going to inoculate cattle! Why? Because animals get sick! The cows that you're eating are susceptible to being infected with disease. If you get organic meat, it can have diseases. Things like brucellosis, and scabies! This is what the livestock farmers don't tell you. Your steak may have had scabies.

 

But when meat farmers doctor up your steak with antibiotics, that means YOU are now ingesting residues of tetracyclines, and other drugs left in the meat. And guess what. That KILLS your gut bacteria. It doesn't just kill the bad bacteria, it doesn't know the difference. It kills the good bacteria too. The kind you need for digestion.

 

Have you heard the word Pro Biotics? Know what that is? Good for you, right? Well that's the OPPOSITE of an ANTI-BIOTIC. ProBiotics help bacteria. Antibiotics KILL bacteria. That's what an anti-biotic does. So you're out there buying foods that have Pro Biotics, then you come home and eat a piece of steak which has residues of pet-grade ANTI Biotics in it which just killed all your beneficial bacteria that you were trying to get. See the problem?

 

Well, those anti-biotics in steak and meat also kill the bacteria and destroy the enzymes you need to digest food. So a meat-eater is deficient, and lacking in the proper enzymes and good bacteria. A meat-eater's gut is now destroyed, and then the meat sits there and putrifies inside a man's (or womans) insides. And then you smell him in the bathroom. It's horrible.

 

Vegetarians do not have this problem. Vegetarians have healthy pro biotic bacteria, that are not killed off, and enzymes that are intact. And can digest plants, legumes, tubers, beans and vegetables with no problem. Also vegetarians get more FIBER which meat is deficient in. So men who eat meat are better-smelling, and don't stink up the rest room, have less problems with stuck constipation like beef eaters, and get less growths around a man's underside like a barbeque-eating man will have.

 

Didn't know this? Well, just type "Vegetarian vs Meat Eater Body Odor Attractiveness" into google and you'll find out.

 

Meat Eaters also have horrible bad breath. Lowcarb Atkins high protein dieters have it even worse. Lowcarb diets result in a condition called Ketosis, which is a lack of and deficiency in carbs which produces what are known as Ketone bodies in the mouths of Lowcarb Diet people. This is why their breath smells so bad. It's like sour and rotted. Like something died in there when you wake up in bed and get a whiff. This is why women doing crossfit have such horrible brath and body odor. Crossfitters have horrible bad breath and B.O. because they often got duped by the now known debunked Paleo fad Diet, which has lots of bad meat and is deficient in fiber and carbs. So they exercise and their body gasses and milky sweat contains offensive ketone smells.

 

This is why crossfitters smell so bad and why they can't seem to shower it off. It lingers like a gas cloud being secreted by their body all workday long. Not just during a workout. It's coming from their bodily tissues because of what they ate.

 

Please make a note of it. Tell others. Girls and Women... now you know never to fall for getting duped into crossfit. And if you have a girlfriend doing it, or worse, your man...tell them to get out of it as soon as possible, or your bathrooms, car, house, and bed are going to smell horrible.

 

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The Orchidaceae are a diverse and widespread family of flowering plants, with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant, commonly known as the orchid family.

 

Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering plants. The Orchidaceae have about 28,000 currently accepted species, distributed in about 763 genera. The determination of which family is larger is still under debate, because verified data on the members of such enormous families are continually in flux. Regardless, the number of orchid species is nearly equal to the number of bony fishes, more than twice the number of bird species, and about four times the number of mammal species.

 

The family encompasses about 6–11% of all seed plants. The largest genera are Bulbophyllum (2,000 species), Epidendrum (1,500 species), Dendrobium (1,400 species) and Pleurothallis (1,000 species). It also includes Vanilla (the genus of the vanilla plant), the type genus Orchis, and many commonly cultivated plants such as Phalaenopsis and Cattleya. Moreover, since the introduction of tropical species into cultivation in the 19th century, horticulturists have produced more than 100,000 hybrids and cultivars.

 

DESCRIPTION

Orchids are easily distinguished from other plants, as they share some very evident derived characteristics or synapomorphies. Among these are: bilateral symmetry of the flower (zygomorphism), many resupinate flowers, a nearly always highly modified petal (labellum), fused stamens and carpels, and extremely small seeds.

 

STEM AND ROOTS

All orchids are perennial herbs that lack any permanent woody structure. They can grow according to two patterns:

 

Monopodial: The stem grows from a single bud, leaves are added from the apex each year, and the stem grows longer accordingly. The stem of orchids with a monopodial growth can reach several metres in length, as in Vanda and Vanilla.

Sympodial: Sympodial orchids have a front (the newest growth) and a back (the oldest growth). The plant produces a series of adjacent shoots, which grow to a certain size, bloom and then stop growing and are replaced. Sympodial orchids grow laterally rather than vertically, following the surface of their support. The growth continues by development of new leads, with their own leaves and roots, sprouting from or next to those of the previous year, as in Cattleya. While a new lead is developing, the rhizome may start its growth again from a so-called 'eye', an undeveloped bud, thereby branching. Sympodial orchids may have visible pseudobulbs joined by a rhizome, which creeps along the top or just beneath the soil.

 

Terrestrial orchids may be rhizomatous or form corms or tubers. The root caps of terrestrial orchids are smooth and white.

 

Some sympodial terrestrial orchids, such as Orchis and Ophrys, have two subterranean tuberous roots. One is used as a food reserve for wintry periods, and provides for the development of the other one, from which visible growth develops.

 

In warm and constantly humid climates, many terrestrial orchids do not need pseudobulbs.

 

Epiphytic orchids, those that grow upon a support, have modified aerial roots that can sometimes be a few meters long. In the older parts of the roots, a modified spongy epidermis, called a velamen, has the function of absorbing humidity. It is made of dead cells and can have a silvery-grey, white or brown appearance. In some orchids, the velamen includes spongy and fibrous bodies near the passage cells, called tilosomes.

 

The cells of the root epidermis grow at a right angle to the axis of the root to allow them to get a firm grasp on their support. Nutrients for epiphytic orchids mainly come from mineral dust, organic detritus, animal droppings and other substances collecting among on their supporting surfaces.

 

The base of the stem of sympodial epiphytes, or in some species essentially the entire stem, may be thickened to form a pseudobulb that contains nutrients and water for drier periods.

 

The pseudobulb has a smooth surface with lengthwise grooves, and can have different shapes, often conical or oblong. Its size is very variable; in some small species of Bulbophyllum, it is no longer than two millimeters, while in the largest orchid in the world, Grammatophyllum speciosum (giant orchid), it can reach three meters. Some Dendrobium species have long, canelike pseudobulbs with short, rounded leaves over the whole length; some other orchids have hidden or extremely small pseudobulbs, completely included inside the leaves.

 

With ageing, the pseudobulb sheds its leaves and becomes dormant. At this stage, it is often called a backbulb. Backbulbs still hold nutrition for the plant, but then a pseudobulb usually takes over, exploiting the last reserves accumulated in the backbulb, which eventually dies off, too. A pseudobulb typically lives for about five years. Orchids without noticeable pseudobulbs are also said to have growths, an individual component of a sympodial plant.

 

LEAVES

Like most monocots, orchids generally have simple leaves with parallel veins, although some Vanilloideae have reticulate venation. Leaves may be ovate, lanceolate, or orbiculate, and very variable in size on the individual plant. Their characteristics are often diagnostic. They are normally alternate on the stem, often folded lengthwise along the centre ("plicate"), and have no stipules. Orchid leaves often have siliceous bodies called stegmata in the vascular bundle sheaths (not present in the Orchidoideae) and are fibrous.

 

The structure of the leaves corresponds to the specific habitat of the plant. Species that typically bask in sunlight, or grow on sites which can be occasionally very dry, have thick, leathery leaves and the laminae are covered by a waxy cuticle to retain their necessary water supply. Shade-loving species, on the other hand, have long, thin leaves.

 

The leaves of most orchids are perennial, that is, they live for several years, while others, especially those with plicate leaves as in Catasetum, shed them annually and develop new leaves together with new pseudobulbs.

 

The leaves of some orchids are considered ornamental. The leaves of the Macodes sanderiana, a semiterrestrial or rock-hugging ("lithophyte") orchid, show a sparkling silver and gold veining on a light green background. The cordate leaves of Psychopsis limminghei are light brownish-green with maroon-puce markings, created by flower pigments. The attractive mottle of the leaves of lady's slippers from tropical and subtropical Asia (Paphiopedilum), is caused by uneven distribution of chlorophyll. Also, Phalaenopsis schilleriana is a pastel pink orchid with leaves spotted dark green and light green. The jewel orchid (Ludisia discolor) is grown more for its colorful leaves than its white flowers.

 

Some orchids, such as Dendrophylax lindenii (ghost orchid), Aphyllorchis and Taeniophyllum depend on their green roots for photosynthesis and lack normally developed leaves, as do all of the heterotrophic species.

 

Orchids of the genus Corallorhiza (coralroot orchids) lack leaves altogether and instead wrap their roots around the roots of mature trees and use specialized fungi to harvest sugars.

 

FLOWERS

The Orchidaceae are well known for the many structural variations in their flowers.

 

Some orchids have single flowers, but most have a racemose inflorescence, sometimes with a large number of flowers. The flowering stem can be basal, that is, produced from the base of the tuber, like in Cymbidium, apical, meaning it grows from the apex of the main stem, like in Cattleya, or axillary, from the leaf axil, as in Vanda.

 

As an apomorphy of the clade, orchid flowers are primitively zygomorphic (bilaterally symmetrical), although in some genera, such as Mormodes, Ludisia, and Macodes, this kind of symmetry may be difficult to notice.

 

The orchid flower, like most flowers of monocots, has two whorls of sterile elements. The outer whorl has three sepals and the inner whorl has three petals. The sepals are usually very similar to the petals (thus called tepals, 1), but may be completely distinct.

 

The medial petal, called the labellum or lip (6), which is always modified and enlarged, is actually the upper medial petal; however, as the flower develops, the inferior ovary or the pedicel usually rotates 180°, so that the labellum arrives at the lower part of the flower, thus becoming suitable to form a platform for pollinators. This characteristic, called resupination, occurs primitively in the family and is considered apomorphic, a derived characteristic all Orchidaceae share. The torsion of the ovary is very evident from the longitudinal section shown (below right). Some orchids have secondarily lost this resupination, e.g. Epidendrum secundum.

 

The normal form of the sepals can be found in Cattleya, where they form a triangle. In Paphiopedilum (Venus slippers), the lower two sepals are fused into a synsepal, while the lip has taken the form of a slipper. In Masdevallia, all the sepals are fused.

 

Orchid flowers with abnormal numbers of petals or lips are called peloric. Peloria is a genetic trait, but its expression is environmentally influenced and may appear random.

 

Orchid flowers primitively had three stamens, but this situation is now limited to the genus Neuwiedia. Apostasia and the Cypripedioideae have two stamens, the central one being sterile and reduced to a staminode. All of the other orchids, the clade called Monandria, retain only the central stamen, the others being reduced to staminodes (4). The filaments of the stamens are always adnate (fused) to the style to form cylindrical structure called the gynostemium or column (2). In the primitive Apostasioideae, this fusion is only partial; in the Vanilloideae, it is more deep; in Orchidoideae and Epidendroideae, it is total. The stigma (9) is very asymmetrical, as all of its lobes are bent towards the centre of the flower and lie on the bottom of the column.

 

Pollen is released as single grains, like in most other plants, in the Apostasioideae, Cypripedioideae, and Vanilloideae. In the other subfamilies, which comprise the great majority of orchids, the anther (3) carries two pollinia.

 

A pollinium is a waxy mass of pollen grains held together by the glue-like alkaloid viscin, containing both cellulosic strands and mucopolysaccharides. Each pollinium is connected to a filament which can take the form of a caudicle, as in Dactylorhiza or Habenaria, or a stipe, as in Vanda. Caudicles or stipes hold the pollinia to the viscidium, a sticky pad which sticks the pollinia to the body of pollinators.

 

At the upper edge of the stigma of single-anthered orchids, in front of the anther cap, is the rostellum (5), a slender extension involved in the complex pollination mechanism.

 

As mentioned, the ovary is always inferior (located behind the flower). It is three-carpelate and one or, more rarely, three-partitioned, with parietal placentation (axile in the Apostasioideae).

 

In 2011, Bulbophyllum nocturnum was discovered to flower nocturnally.

 

POLLINATION

The complex mechanisms that orchids have evolved to achieve cross-pollination were investigated by Charles Darwin and described in Fertilisation of Orchids (1862). Orchids have developed highly specialized pollination systems, thus the chances of being pollinated are often scarce, so orchid flowers usually remain receptive for very long periods, rendering unpollinated flowers long-lasting in cultivation. Most orchids deliver pollen in a single mass. Each time pollination succeeds, thousands of ovules can be fertilized.

 

Pollinators are often visually attracted by the shape and colours of the labellum. However, some Bulbophyllum species attract male fruit flies (Bactrocera and Zeugodacus spp.) solely via a floral chemical which simultaneously acts as a floral reward (e.g. methyl eugenol, raspberry ketone, or zingerone) to perform pollination. The flowers may produce attractive odours. Although absent in most species, nectar may be produced in a spur of the labellum (8 in the illustration above), or on the point of the sepals, or in the septa of the ovary, the most typical position amongst the Asparagales.

 

In orchids that produce pollinia, pollination happens as some variant of the following sequence: when the pollinator enters into the flower, it touches a viscidium, which promptly sticks to its body, generally on the head or abdomen. While leaving the flower, it pulls the pollinium out of the anther, as it is connected to the viscidium by the caudicle or stipe. The caudicle then bends and the pollinium is moved forwards and downwards. When the pollinator enters another flower of the same species, the pollinium has taken such position that it will stick to the stigma of the second flower, just below the rostellum, pollinating it. The possessors of orchids may be able to reproduce the process with a pencil, small paintbrush, or other similar device.

 

Some orchids mainly or totally rely on self-pollination, especially in colder regions where pollinators are particularly rare. The caudicles may dry up if the flower has not been visited by any pollinator, and the pollinia then fall directly on the stigma. Otherwise, the anther may rotate and then enter the stigma cavity of the flower (as in Holcoglossum amesianum).

 

The slipper orchid Paphiopedilum parishii reproduces by self-fertilization. This occurs when the anther changes from a solid to a liquid state and directly contacts the stigma surface without the aid of any pollinating agent or floral assembly.

 

The labellum of the Cypripedioideae is poke bonnet-shaped, and has the function of trapping visiting insects. The only exit leads to the anthers that deposit pollen on the visitor.

 

In some extremely specialized orchids, such as the Eurasian genus Ophrys, the labellum is adapted to have a colour, shape, and odour which attracts male insects via mimicry of a receptive female. Pollination happens as the insect attempts to mate with flowers.

 

Many neotropical orchids are pollinated by male orchid bees, which visit the flowers to gather volatile chemicals they require to synthesize pheromonal attractants. Males of such species as Euglossa imperialis or Eulaema meriana have been observed to leave their territories periodically to forage for aromatic compounds, such as cineole, to synthesize pheromone for attracting and mating with females. Each type of orchid places the pollinia on a different body part of a different species of bee, so as to enforce proper cross-pollination.

 

A rare achlorophyllous saprophytic orchid growing entirely underground in Australia, Rhizanthella slateri, is never exposed to light, and depends on ants and other terrestrial insects to pollinate it.

 

Catasetum, a genus discussed briefly by Darwin, actually launches its viscid pollinia with explosive force when an insect touches a seta, knocking the pollinator off the flower.

 

After pollination, the sepals and petals fade and wilt, but they usually remain attached to the ovary.

 

ASEXUAL REPRODUCTION

Some species, such as Phalaenopsis, Dendrobium, and Vanda, produce offshoots or plantlets formed from one of the nodes along the stem, through the accumulation of growth hormones at that point. These shoots are known as keiki.

 

FRUITS AND SEEDS

The ovary typically develops into a capsule that is dehiscent by three or six longitudinal slits, while remaining closed at both ends.

 

The seeds are generally almost microscopic and very numerous, in some species over a million per capsule. After ripening, they blow off like dust particles or spores. They lack endosperm and must enter symbiotic relationships with various mycorrhizal basidiomyceteous fungi that provide them the necessary nutrients to germinate, so all orchid species are mycoheterotrophic during germination and reliant upon fungi to complete their lifecycles.

 

As the chance for a seed to meet a suitable fungus is very small, only a minute fraction of all the seeds released grow into adult plants. In cultivation, germination typically takes weeks.

 

Horticultural techniques have been devised for germinating orchid seeds on an artificial nutrient medium, eliminating the requirement of the fungus for germination and greatly aiding the propagation of ornamental orchids. The usual medium for the sowing of orchids in artificial conditions is agar gel combined with a carbohydrate energy source. The carbohydrate source can be combinations of discrete sugars or can be derived from other sources such as banana, pineapple, peach, or even tomato puree or coconut water. After the preparation of the agar medium, it is poured into test tubes or jars which are then autoclaved (or cooked in a pressure cooker) to sterilize the medium. After cooking, the medium begins to gel as it cools.

 

TAXONOMY

The taxonomy of this family is in constant flux, as new studies continue to clarify the relationships between species and groups of species, allowing more taxa at several ranks to be recognized. The Orchidaceae is currently placed in the order Asparagales by the APG III system of 2009.

 

Five subfamilies are recognised. The cladogram below was made according to the APG system of 1998. It represents the view that most botanists had held up to that time. It was supported by morphological studies, but never received strong support in molecular phylogenetic studies.

 

Apostasioideae: 2 genera and 16 species, south-western Asia

Cypripedioideae: 5 genera and 130 species, from the temperate regions of the world, as well as tropical America and tropical Asia

 

Monandrae

Vanilloideae: 15 genera and 180 species, humid tropical and subtropical regions, eastern North America 

Epidendroideae: more than 500 genera and more or less 20,000 species, cosmopolitan

Orchidoideae: 208 genera and 3,630 species, cosmopolitan

 

In 2015, a phylogenetic study showed strong statistical support for the following topology of the orchid tree, using 9 kb of plastid and nuclear DNA from 7 genes, a topology that was confirmed by a phylogenomic study in the same year. 

 

Apostasioideae

Vanilloideae

Cypripedioideae 

Epidendroideae

Orchidoideae

 

EVOLUTION

A study in the scientific journal Nature has hypothesised that the origin of orchids goes back much longer than originally expected. An extinct species of stingless bee, Proplebeia dominicana, was found trapped in Miocene amber from about 15-20 million years ago. The bee was carrying pollen of a previously unknown orchid taxon, Meliorchis caribea, on its wings. This find is the first evidence of fossilised orchids to date and shows insects were active pollinators of orchids then. This extinct orchid, M. caribea, has been placed within the extant tribe Cranichideae, subtribe Goodyerinae (subfamily Orchidoideae). An even older orchid species, Succinanthera baltica, was described from the Eocene Baltic amber by Poinar & Rasmussen (2017).

 

Genetic sequencing indicates orchids may have arisen earlier, 76 to 84 million years ago during the Late Cretaceous. According to Mark W. Chase et al. (2001), the overall biogeography and phylogenetic patterns of Orchidaceae show they are even older and may go back roughly 100 million years.

 

Using the molecular clock method, it was possible to determine the age of the major branches of the orchid family. This also confirmed that the subfamily Vanilloideae is a branch at the basal dichotomy of the monandrous orchids, and must have evolved very early in the evolution of the family. Since this subfamily occurs worldwide in tropical and subtropical regions, from tropical America to tropical Asia, New Guinea and West Africa, and the continents began to split about 100 million years ago, significant biotic exchange must have occurred after this split (since the age of Vanilla is estimated at 60 to 70 million years).

 

Genome duplication occurred prior to the divergence of this taxon.

 

GENERA

There are around 800 genera of orchids.

 

ETYOLOGY

The type genus (i.e. the genus after which the family is named) is Orchis. The genus name comes from the Ancient Greek ὄρχις (órkhis), literally meaning "testicle", because of the shape of the twin tubers in some species of Orchis. The term "orchid" was introduced in 1845 by John Lindley in School Botany, as a shortened form of Orchidaceae.

 

In Middle English, the name bollockwort was used for some orchids, based on "bollock" meaning testicle and "wort" meaning plant.

 

DISTRIBUTION

Orchidaceae are cosmopolitan, occurring in almost every habitat apart from glaciers. The world's richest diversity of orchid genera and species is found in the tropics, but they are also found above the Arctic Circle, in southern Patagonia, and two species of Nematoceras on Macquarie Island at 54° south.

 

The following list gives a rough overview of their distribution:

 

Oceania: 50 to 70 genera

North America: 20 to 26 genera

tropical America: 212 to 250 genera

tropical Asia: 260 to 300 genera

tropical Africa: 230 to 270 genera

Europe and temperate Asia: 40 to 60 genera 

 

ECOLOGY

A majority of orchids are perennial epiphytes, which grow anchored to trees or shrubs in the tropics and subtropics. Species such as Angraecum sororium are lithophytes, growing on rocks or very rocky soil. Other orchids (including the majority of temperate Orchidaceae) are terrestrial and can be found in habitat areas such as grasslands or forest.

 

Some orchids, such as Neottia and Corallorhiza, lack chlorophyll, so are unable to photosynthesise. Instead, these species obtain energy and nutrients by parasitising soil fungi through the formation of orchid mycorrhizae. The fungi involved include those that form ectomycorrhizas with trees and other woody plants, parasites such as Armillaria, and saprotrophs. These orchids are known as myco-heterotrophs, but were formerly (incorrectly) described as saprophytes as it was believed they gained their nutrition by breaking down organic matter. While only a few species are achlorophyllous holoparasites, all orchids are myco-heterotrophic during germination and seedling growth, and even photosynthetic adult plants may continue to obtain carbon from their mycorrhizal fungi.

 

USES

PERFUMERY

The scent of orchids is frequently analysed by perfumers (using headspace technology and gas-liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry) to identify potential fragrance chemicals.

 

HORTICULTURE

The other important use of orchids is their cultivation for the enjoyment of the flowers. Most cultivated orchids are tropical or subtropical, but quite a few that grow in colder climates can be found on the market. Temperate species available at nurseries include Ophrys apifera (bee orchid), Gymnadenia conopsea (fragrant orchid), Anacamptis pyramidalis (pyramidal orchid) and Dactylorhiza fuchsii (common spotted orchid).

 

Orchids of all types have also often been sought by collectors of both species and hybrids. Many hundreds of societies and clubs worldwide have been established. These can be small, local clubs, or larger, national organisations such as the American Orchid Society. Both serve to encourage cultivation and collection of orchids, but some go further by concentrating on conservation or research.

 

The term "botanical orchid" loosely denotes those small-flowered, tropical orchids belonging to several genera that do not fit into the "florist" orchid category. A few of these genera contain enormous numbers of species. Some, such as Pleurothallis and Bulbophyllum, contain approximately 1700 and 2000 species, respectively, and are often extremely vegetatively diverse. The primary use of the term is among orchid hobbyists wishing to describe unusual species they grow, though it is also used to distinguish naturally occurring orchid species from horticulturally created hybrids.

 

New orchids are registered with the International Orchid Register, maintained by the Royal Horticultural Society.

 

USE AS FOOD

The dried seed pods of one orchid genus, Vanilla (especially Vanilla planifolia), are commercially important as a flavouring in baking, for perfume manufacture and aromatherapy.

 

The underground tubers of terrestrial orchids [mainly Orchis mascula (early purple orchid)] are ground to a powder and used for cooking, such as in the hot beverage salep or in the Turkish frozen treat dondurma. The name salep has been claimed to come from the Arabic expression ḥasyu al-tha‘lab, "fox testicles", but it appears more likely the name comes directly from the Arabic name saḥlab. The similarity in appearance to testes naturally accounts for salep being considered an aphrodisiac.

 

The dried leaves of Jumellea fragrans are used to flavour rum on Reunion Island.

 

Some saprophytic orchid species of the group Gastrodia produce potato-like tubers and were consumed as food by native peoples in Australia and can be successfully cultivated, notably Gastrodia sesamoides. Wild stands of these plants can still be found in the same areas as early Aboriginal settlements, such as Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park in Australia. Aboriginal peoples located the plants in habitat by observing where bandicoots had scratched in search of the tubers after detecting the plants underground by scent.

 

CULTURAL SYMBOLISM

Orchids have many associations with symbolic values. For example, the orchid is the City Flower of Shaoxing, China. Cattleya mossiae is the national Venezuelan flower, while Cattleya trianae is the national flower of Colombia. Vanda 'Miss Joaquim' is the national flower of Singapore, Guarianthe skinneri is the national flower of Costa Rica and Rhyncholaelia digbyana is the national flower of Honduras. Prosthechea cochleata is the national flower of Belize, where it is known as the black orchid. Lycaste skinneri has a white variety (alba) that is the national flower of Guatemala, commonly known as Monja Blanca (White Nun). Panama's national flower is the Holy Ghost orchid (Peristeria elata), or 'the flor del Espiritu Santo'. Rhynchostylis retusa is the state flower of the Indian state of Assam where it is known as Kopou Phul.

 

Orchids native to the Mediterranean are depicted on the Ara Pacis in Rome, until now the only known instance of orchids in ancient art, and the earliest in European art.

 

WIKIPEDIA

The durian (/ˈdjʊriən/) is the fruit of several tree species belonging to the genus Durio. The name 'durian' is derived from the Malay-Indonesian languages word for duri or "spike", a reference to the numerous spike protuberances of the fruit, together with the noun-building suffix -an. There are 30 recognised Durio species, at least nine of which produce edible fruit. Durio zibethinus is the only species available in the international market: other species are sold in their local regions.

 

Regarded by many people in southeast Asia as the "king of fruits", the durian is distinctive for its large size, strong odour, and formidable thorn-covered husk. The fruit can grow as large as 30 centimetres long and 15 centimetres in diameter, and it typically weighs one to three kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale yellow to red, depending on the species.

 

The edible flesh emits a distinctive odour that is strong and penetrating even when the husk is intact. Some people regard the durian as having a pleasantly sweet fragrance; others find the aroma overpowering and revolting. The smell evokes reactions from deep appreciation to intense disgust, and has been described variously as rotten onions, turpentine, and raw sewage. The persistence of its odour has led to the fruit's banishment from certain hotels and public transportation in Southeast Asia.

 

The durian, native to Southeast Asia, has been known to the Western world for about 600 years. The nineteenth-century British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace described its flesh as "a rich custard highly flavoured with almonds". The flesh can be consumed at various stages of ripeness, and it is used to flavour a wide variety of savoury and sweet edibles in Southeast Asian cuisines. The seeds can also be eaten when cooked.

 

There are hundreds of durian cultivars; many consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

 

TAXONOMY

The genus Durio is placed by some taxonomists in the family Bombacaceae, or by others in a broadly defined Malvaceae that includes Bombacaceae, and by others in a smaller family of just seven genera Durionaceae.

 

DESCRIPTION

Durian trees are large, growing to 25–50 metres in height depending on the species. The leaves are evergreen, elliptic to oblong and 10–18 centimetres long. The flowers are produced in three to thirty clusters together on large branches and directly on the trunk with each flower having a calyx (sepals) and five (rarely four or six) petals. Durian trees have one or two flowering and fruiting periods per year, although the timing varies depending on the species, cultivars, and localities. A typical durian tree can bear fruit after four or five years. The durian fruit can hang from any branch and matures roughly three months after pollination. The fruit can grow up to 30 centimetres long and 15 centimetres (6 in) in diameter, and typically weighs one to three kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale-yellow to red, depending on the species. Among the thirty known species of Durio, nine of them have been identified as producing edible fruits: D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. grandiflorus, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. macrantha, D. oxleyanus, and D. testudinarum. There are many species for which the fruit has never been collected or properly examined, however, so other species with edible fruit may exist. The durian is somewhat similar in appearance to the jackfruit, an unrelated species.

 

The name durian comes from the Malay word duri (thorn) together with the suffix -an (for building a noun in Malay). D. zibethinus is the only species commercially cultivated on a large scale and available outside of its native region. Since this species is open-pollinated, it shows considerable diversity in fruit colour and odour, size of flesh and seed, and tree phenology. In the species name, zibethinus refers to the Indian civet, Viverra zibetha. There is disagreement regarding whether this name, bestowed by Linnaeus, refers to civets being so fond of the durian that the fruit was used as bait to entrap them, or to the durian smelling like the civet.

 

Durian flowers are large and feathery with copious nectar, and give off a heavy, sour, and buttery odour. These features are typical of flowers pollinated by certain species of bats that eat nectar and pollen. According to research conducted in Malaysia in the 1970s, durians were pollinated almost exclusively by cave fruit bats (Eonycteris spelaea); however, a 1996 study indicated two species, D. grandiflorus and D. oblongus, were pollinated by spiderhunters (Nectariniidae) and another species, D. kutejensis, was pollinated by giant honey bees and birds as well as bats.

 

CULTIVARS

Over the centuries, numerous durian cultivars, propagated by vegetative clones, have arisen in southeast Asia. They used to be grown with mixed results from seeds of trees bearing superior quality fruit, but now are propagated by layering, marcotting, or more commonly, by grafting, including bud, veneer, wedge, whip or U-grafting onto seedlings of randomly selected rootstocks. Different cultivars may be distinguished to some extent by variations in the fruit shape, such as the shape of the spines. Durian consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

 

Most cultivars have a common name and a code number starting with "D". For example, some popular clones are Kop (D99 Thai: กบ – "frog" [kòp]), Chanee (D123, Thai: ชะนี – gibbon [tɕʰániː]), Berserah or Green Durian or Tuan Mek Hijau (D145 Thai: ทุเรียนเขียว – Green Durian [tʰúriːən kʰǐow]), Kan Yao (D158, Thai: ก้านยาว – Long Stem [kâːn jaːw]), Mon Thong (D159, Thai: หมอนทอง – Golden Pillow [mɔ̌ːn tʰɔːŋ]), Kradum Thong (Thai: กระดุมทอง – Golden Button [kràdum tʰɔːŋ]), and with no common name, D24 and D169. Each cultivar has a distinct taste and odour. More than 200 cultivars of D. zibethinus exist in Thailand.

 

Mon thong is the most commercially sought after for its thick, full-bodied creamy and mild sweet tasting flesh with relatively moderate smell emitted and smaller seeds, while Chanee is the best in terms of its resistance to infection by Phytophthora palmivora. Kan Yao is somewhat less common, but prized for its longer window of time when it is both sweet and odorless at the same time. Among all the cultivars in Thailand, five are currently in large-scale commercial cultivation: Chanee, Mon Thong, Kan Yao, Ruang, and Kradum. There are more than 100 registered cultivars since 1920's in Malaysia and up to 193 cultivar by 1992, and many superior cultivars have been identified through competitions held at the annual Malaysian Agriculture, Horticulture, and Agrotourism Show. In Vietnam, the same process has been achieved through competitions held by the Southern Fruit Research Institute. A recently popular variety is, Cat Mountain King or Musang King.

 

By 2007, Songpol Somsri, a Thai government scientist, had crossbred more than ninety varieties of durian to create Chantaburi No. 1, a cultivar without the characteristic odour. Another hybrid, Chantaburi No. 3, develops the odour about three days after the fruit is picked, which enables an odourless transport yet satisfies consumers who prefer the pungent odour. On 22 May 2012, two other cultivars from Thailand that also lack the usual odour, Long Laplae and Lin Laplae, were presented to the public by Yothin Samutkhiri, governor of Uttaradit province from where these cultivars were developed locally, while he announced the dates for the yearly durian fair of Laplae District, and the name giver to both cultivars.

 

Popular cultivars in Malaysia and Singapore (Singapore imports most of its durians from Malaysia hence the varieties are similar although there may be slight variation in the names) include "D24" which is a popular variety known for its bitter sweet taste; "XO" which has a pale color, thick flesh with a tinge of alcoholic fermentation; "Chook Kiok" (Cantonese meaning: bamboo leg) which has a distinctive yellowish core in the inner stem and "Musang King" ( Musang is the Malay word for civet cat) which is usually the priciest of all cultivars. Musang King has bright yellow flesh and is almost like a more potent or enhanced version of the D24. This particular variety should be consumed last since it tends to make other durians taste bland in comparison.

 

CULTIVATION AND AVAIBILITY

The durian is native to Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia.[8] There is some debate as to whether the durian is native to the Philippines, particularly the Davao region in the island of Mindanao, or was introduced. The durian is grown in other areas with a similar climate; it is strictly tropical and stops growing when mean daily temperatures drop below 22 °C.

 

The centre of ecological diversity for durians is the island of Borneo, where the fruit of the edible species of Durio including D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. oxleyanus and D. testudinarum is sold in local markets. In Brunei, D. zibethinus is not grown because consumers prefer other species such as D. graveolens, D. kutejensis and D. oxleyanus. These species are commonly distributed in Brunei, and together with other species like D. testudinarum and D. dulcis, represent rich genetic diversity.

 

Although the durian is not native to Thailand, the country is currently one of the major exporters of durians, growing 781,000 tonnes of the world's total harvest of 1,400,000 tonnes in 1999, 111,000 tonnes of which it exported to Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore and Canada. Malaysia and Indonesia follow, both producing about 265,000 tonnes each. Of this, Malaysia exported 35,000 tonnes in 1999. Chantaburi in Thailand each year holds the World Durian Festival in early May. This single province is responsible for half of the durian production of Thailand. In the Philippines, the centre of durian production is the Davao Region. The Kadayawan Festival is an annual celebration featuring the durian in Davao City. Other places where durian farms are located include Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, India, the West Indies, Florida, Hawaii, Papua New Guinea, the Polynesian Islands, Madagascar, southern China (Hainan Island), northern Australia, and Singapore.

 

Durian was introduced into Australia in the early 1960s and clonal material was first introduced in 1975. Over thirty clones of D. zibethinus and six Durio species have been subsequently introduced into Australia. China is the major importer, purchasing 65,000 tonnes in 1999, followed by Singapore with 40,000 tonnes and Taiwan with 5,000 tonnes. In the same year, the United States imported 2,000 tonnes, mostly frozen, and the European Community imported 500 tonnes.

 

The durian is a seasonal fruit, unlike some other non-seasonal tropical fruits such as the papaya, which are available throughout the year. In Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, the season for durians is typically from June to August, which coincides with that of the mangosteen. Prices of durians are relatively high as compared with other fruits. For example, in Singapore, the strong demand for high quality cultivars such as the D24, Sultan, and Mao Shan Wang has resulted in typical retail prices of between S$8 to S$15 (US$5 to US$10) per kilogram of whole fruit. With an average weight of about 1.5 kilograms, a durian fruit would therefore cost about S$12 to S$22 (US$8 to US$15). The edible portion of the fruit, known as the aril and usually referred to as the "flesh" or "pulp", only accounts for about 15–30% of the mass of the entire fruit. Many consumers in Singapore are nevertheless quite willing to spend up to around S$75 (US$50) on a single purchase of about half a dozen of the favoured fruit to be shared by family members.

 

In-season durians can be found in mainstream Japanese supermarkets, while in the West they are sold mainly by Asian markets.

 

FLAVOUR AND ODOUR

The unusual flavour and odour of the fruit have prompted many people to express diverse and passionate views ranging from deep appreciation to intense disgust. Writing in 1856, the British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace provided a much-quoted description of the flavour of the durian:

 

The five cells are silky-white within, and are filled with a mass of firm, cream-coloured pulp, containing about three seeds each. This pulp is the edible part, and its consistence and flavour are indescribable. A rich custard highly flavoured with almonds gives the best general idea of it, but there are occasional wafts of flavour that call to mind cream-cheese, onion-sauce, sherry-wine, and other incongruous dishes. Then there is a rich glutinous smoothness in the pulp which nothing else possesses, but which adds to its delicacy. It is neither acidic nor sweet nor juicy; yet it wants neither of these qualities, for it is in itself perfect. It produces no nausea or other bad effect, and the more you eat of it the less you feel inclined to stop. In fact, to eat Durians is a new sensation worth a voyage to the East to experience. ... as producing a food of the most exquisite flavour it is unsurpassed.

 

Wallace described himself as being at first reluctant to try it because of the aroma, "but in Borneo I found a ripe fruit on the ground, and, eating it out of doors, I at once became a confirmed Durian eater." He cited one traveller from 1599: "it is of such an excellent taste that it surpasses in flavour all other fruits of the world, according to those who have tasted it." He cites another writer: "To those not used to it, it seems at first to smell like rotten onions, but immediately after they have tasted it they prefer it to all other food. The natives give it honourable titles, exalt it, and make verses on it." Despite having tried many foods that are arguably more eccentric, Andrew Zimmern, host of Bizarre Foods, was unable to finish a durian upon sampling it, due to his intolerance of its strong taste.

 

While Wallace cautions that "the smell of the ripe fruit is certainly at first disagreeable", later descriptions by westerners are more graphic. Novelist Anthony Burgess writes that eating durian is "like eating sweet raspberry blancmange in the lavatory". Chef Andrew Zimmern compares the taste to "completely rotten, mushy onions". Anthony Bourdain, a lover of durian, relates his encounter with the fruit thus: "Its taste can only be described as...indescribable, something you will either love or despise. ...Your breath will smell as if you'd been French-kissing your dead grandmother." Likewise, fellow chef Jamie Oliver has also expressed admiration for the fruit on his first sampling. Travel and food writer Richard Sterling says:

 

... its odor is best described as pig-shit, turpentine and onions, garnished with a gym sock. It can be smelled from yards away. Despite its great local popularity, the raw fruit is forbidden from some establishments such as hotels, subways and airports, including public transportation in Southeast Asia.

 

Other comparisons have been made with the civet, sewage, stale vomit, skunk spray and used surgical swabs. The wide range of descriptions for the odour of durian may have a great deal to do with the variability of durian odour itself. Durians from different species or clones can have significantly different aromas; for example, red durian (D. dulcis) has a deep caramel flavour with a turpentine odour while red-fleshed durian (D. graveolens) emits a fragrance of roasted almonds. Among the varieties of D. zibethinus, Thai varieties are sweeter in flavour and less odorous than Malay ones. The degree of ripeness has an effect on the flavour as well. Three scientific analyses of the composition of durian aroma – from 1972, 1980, and 1995 – each found a mix of volatile compounds including esters, ketones, and different sulphur compounds, with no agreement on which may be primarily responsible for the distinctive odour. People in South East Asia with frequent exposures to durian are able to easily distinguish its sweet-like ketones and esters scent from rotten or putrescine odours which are from volatile amines and fatty acids. Developmental or genetic differences in olfactory perception and mapping within the brain ( for e.g. anterior piriform cortex to the orbitofrontal cortex) could possibly explain why some individuals are unable to differentiate these smells and find this fruit noxious.

 

This strong odour can be detected half a mile away by animals, thus luring them. In addition, the fruit is extremely appetising to a variety of animals, including squirrels, mouse deer, pigs, orangutan, elephants, and even carnivorous tigers. While some of these animals eat the fruit and dispose of the seed under the parent plant, others swallow the seed with the fruit and then transport it some distance before excreting, with the seed being dispersed as a result. The thorny, armoured covering of the fruit discourages smaller animals; larger animals are more likely to transport the seeds far from the parent tree.

 

RIPENESS AND SELECTION

According to Larousse Gastronomique, the durian fruit is ready to eat when its husk begins to crack. However, the ideal stage of ripeness to be enjoyed varies from region to region in Southeast Asia and by species. Some species grow so tall that they can only be collected once they have fallen to the ground, whereas most cultivars of D. zibethinus are nearly always cut from the tree and allowed to ripen while waiting to be sold. Some people in southern Thailand prefer their durians relatively young when the clusters of fruit within the shell are still crisp in texture and mild in flavour. For some people in northern Thailand, the preference is for the fruit to be soft and aromatic. In Malaysia and Singapore, most consumers prefer the fruit to be as ripe and pungent in aroma as possible and may even risk allowing the fruit to continue ripening after its husk has already cracked open. In this state, the flesh becomes richly creamy, slightly alcoholic, the aroma pronounced and the flavour highly complex.

 

The various preferences regarding ripeness among consumers make it hard to issue general statements about choosing a "good" durian. A durian that falls off the tree continues to ripen for two to four days, but after five or six days most would consider it overripe and unpalatable. The usual advice for a durian consumer choosing a whole fruit in the market is to examine the quality of the stem or stalk which loses moisture as it ages: a big, solid stem is a sign of freshness. Reportedly, unscrupulous merchants wrap, paint, or remove the stalks altogether. Due to the popularity of Kan Yao, street vendors may sometimes sell a lesser variety with a long stem to unsuspecting customers. Another frequent piece of advice is to shake the fruit and listen for the sound of the seeds moving within, indicating the durian is very ripe and the pulp has dried out a bit.

 

HISTORY

The durian has been known and consumed in Southeast Asia since prehistoric times, but has only been known to the western world for about 600 years. The earliest native reference to durian is the several bas relief panels of 9th-century Borobudur depicting durian as one of fruit offering for Javanese king, and also as one of the fruits sold in marketplace.

 

The earliest known European reference to the durian is the record of Niccolò Da Conti, who travelled to southeastern Asia in the 15th century. Translated from the Latin in which Poggio Bracciolini recorded Da Conti's travels: "They (people of Sumatra) have a green fruit which they call durian, as big as a watermelon. Inside there are five things like elongated oranges, and resembling thick butter, with a combination of flavours." The Portuguese physician Garcia de Orta described durians in Colóquios dos simples e drogas da India published in 1563. In 1741, Herbarium Amboinense by the German botanist Georg Eberhard Rumphius was published, providing the most detailed and accurate account of durians for over a century. The genus Durio has a complex taxonomy that has seen the subtraction and addition of many species since it was created by Rumphius. During the early stages of its taxonomical study, there was some confusion between durian and the soursop (Annona muricata), for both of these species had thorny green fruit. It is also interesting to note the Malay name for the soursop is durian Belanda, meaning Dutch durian. In the 18th century, Johann Anton Weinmann considered the durian to belong to Castaneae as its fruit was similar to the horse chestnut.

 

D. zibethinus was introduced into Ceylon by the Portuguese in the 16th century and was reintroduced many times later. It has been planted in the Americas but confined to botanical gardens. The first seedlings were sent from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, to Auguste Saint-Arroman of Dominica in 1884.

 

In southeastern Asia, the durian has been cultivated for centuries at the village level, probably since the late 18th century, and commercially since the mid-20th century. In My Tropic Isle, Australian author and naturalist Edmund James Banfield tells how, in the early 20th century, a friend in Singapore sent him a durian seed, which he planted and cared for on his tropical island off the north coast of Queensland.

 

In 1949, the British botanist E. J. H. Corner published The Durian Theory, or the Origin of the Modern Tree. His theory was that endozoochory (the enticement of animals to transport seeds in their stomach) arose before any other method of seed dispersal, and that primitive ancestors of Durio species were the earliest practitioners of that dispersal method, in particular red durian (D. dulcis) exemplifying the primitive fruit of flowering plants.

 

Since the early 1990s, the domestic and international demand for durian in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region has increased significantly, partly due to the increasing affluence of Asia.

 

USES

CULINARY

Durian fruit is used to flavour a wide variety of sweet edibles such as traditional Malay candy, ice kacang, dodol, lempuk, rose biscuits, and, with a touch of modern innovation, ice cream, milkshakes, mooncakes, Yule logs, and cappuccino. Es durian (durian ice cream) is a popular dessert in Indonesia, sold at street side stall in Indonesian cities, especially in Java. Pulut Durian or ketan durian is glutinous rice steamed with coconut milk and served with ripened durian. In Sabah, red durian is fried with onions and chilli and served as a side dish. Red-fleshed durian is traditionally added to sayur, an Indonesian soup made from freshwater fish. Ikan brengkes is fish cooked in a durian-based sauce, traditional in Sumatra. Traditionally Bollen pastry, specialty of Bandung is filled with banana and cheese. Today Bollen durian is also available, it is pastry filled with durian. Dried durian flesh can be made into kripik durian (durian chips).

 

Tempoyak refers to fermented durian, usually made from lower quality durian that is unsuitable for direct consumption. Tempoyak can be eaten either cooked or uncooked, is normally eaten with rice, and can also be used for making curry. Sambal Tempoyak is a Sumatran dish made from the fermented durian fruit, coconut milk, and a collection of spicy ingredients known as sambal.

 

In Thailand, durian is often eaten fresh with sweet sticky rice, and blocks of durian paste are sold in the markets, though much of the paste is adulterated with pumpkin. Unripe durians may be cooked as a vegetable, except in the Philippines, where all uses are sweet rather than savoury. Malaysians make both sugared and salted preserves from durian. When durian is minced with salt, onions and vinegar, it is called boder. The durian seeds, which are the size of chestnuts, can be eaten whether they are boiled, roasted or fried in coconut oil, with a texture that is similar to taro or yam, but stickier. In Java, the seeds are sliced thin and cooked with sugar as a confection. Uncooked durian seeds are toxic due to cyclopropene fatty acids and should not be ingested.

 

Young leaves and shoots of the durian are occasionally cooked as greens. Sometimes the ash of the burned rind is added to special cakes. The petals of durian flowers are eaten in the North Sumatra province of Indonesia, while in the Moluccas islands the husk of the durian fruit is used as fuel to smoke fish. The nectar and pollen of the durian flower that honeybees collect is an important honey source, but the characteristics of the honey are unknown.

 

NUTRITIONS AND FOLK MEDICINE

Durian fruit contains a high amount of sugar, vitamin C, potassium, and the serotonergic amino acid tryptophan, and is a good source of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. It is recommended as a good source of raw fats by several raw food advocates, while others classify it as a high-glycemic food, recommending to minimise its consumption.

 

In Malaysia, a decoction of the leaves and roots used to be prescribed as an antipyretic. The leaf juice is applied on the head of a fever patient. The most complete description of the medicinal use of the durian as remedies for fevers is a Malay prescription, collected by Burkill and Haniff in 1930. It instructs the reader to boil the roots of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis with the roots of Durio zibethinus, Nephelium longan, Nephelium mutabile and Artocarpus integrifolia, and drink the decoction or use it as a poultice.

 

In the 1920s, Durian Fruit Products, Inc., of New York City launched a product called "Dur-India" as a health food supplement, selling at US$9 for a dozen bottles, each containing 63 tablets. The tablets allegedly contained durian and a species of the genus Allium from India and vitamin E. The company promoted the supplement saying that it provides "more concentrated healthful energy in food form than any other product the world affords".

 

CUSTOMS AND BELIEFS

Southeast Asian traditional beliefs, as well as traditional Chinese medicine, consider the durian fruit to have warming properties liable to cause excessive sweating. The traditional method to counteract this is to pour water into the empty shell of the fruit after the pulp has been consumed and drink it. An alternative method is to eat the durian in accompaniment with mangosteen, which is considered to have cooling properties. Pregnant women or people with high blood pressure are traditionally advised not to consume durian.

 

Another common local belief is that the durian is harmful when eaten with coffee or alcoholic beverages. The latter belief can be traced back at least to the 18th century when Rumphius stated that one should not drink alcohol after eating durians as it will cause indigestion and bad breath. In 1929, J. D. Gimlette wrote in his Malay Poisons and Charm Cures that the durian fruit must not be eaten with brandy. In 1981, J. R. Croft wrote in his Bombacaceae: In Handbooks of the Flora of Papua New Guinea that "a feeling of morbidity" often follows the consumption of alcohol too soon after eating durian. Several medical investigations on the validity of this belief have been conducted with varying conclusions, though a study by the University of Tsukuba finds the fruit's high sulphur content inhibits the activity of aldehyde dehydrogenase, causing a 70% reduction of the ability to clear toxins from the body.

 

The Javanese believe durian to have aphrodisiac qualities, and impose a set of rules on what may or may not be consumed with it or shortly thereafter. A saying in Indonesian, durian jatuh sarung naik, meaning "the durian falls and the sarong comes up", refers to this belief. The warnings against the supposed lecherous quality of this fruit soon spread to the West – the Swedenborgian philosopher Herman Vetterling commented on so-called "erotic properties" of the durian in the early 20th century.

 

A durian falling on a person's head can cause serious injuries because it is heavy, armed with sharp thorns, and can fall from a significant height. Wearing a hardhat is recommended when collecting the fruit. Alfred Russel Wallace writes that death rarely ensues from it, because the copious effusion of blood prevents the inflammation which might otherwise take place. A common saying is that a durian has eyes and can see where it is falling because the fruit allegedly never falls during daylight hours when people may be hurt. A saying in Indonesian, ketiban durian runtuh, which translates to "getting a durian avalanche", is the equivalent of the English phrase "windfall gain". Nevertheless, signs warning people not to linger under durian trees are found in Indonesia. Strong nylon or woven rope nettings are often strung between durian trees in orchards, serving a threefold purpose: the nets aid in the collection of the mature fruits, deter ground-level scavengers, and most importantly, prevent the durians from falling onto people.

 

A naturally spineless variety of durian growing wild in Davao, Philippines, was discovered in the 1960s; fruits borne from these seeds also lacked spines. Since the bases of the scales develop into spines as the fruit matures, sometimes spineless durians are produced artificially by scraping scales off immature fruits. In Malaysia, a spinesless durian clone D172 is registered by Agriculture Department on 17 June 1989. It was called "Durian Botak" (Bald Durian). In Indonesia, Ir Sumeru Ashari, head of Durian Research Centre, Universitas Brawijaya reported spineless durian from Kasembon, Malang. Another cultivar is from Lombok, Nusa Tenggara Barat, Indonesia.

 

Animals such as Sumatran elephants are known to consume durians. Curiously, the carnivorous Sumatran tiger is also known to consume durian occasionally. The strong odour of the fallen fruits in the jungle probably attracts the tiger to inspect the fruit and lick it.

 

CULTURAL INFLUENCE

The durian is commonly known as the "King of the Fruits", a label that can be attributed to its formidable look and overpowering odour. In its native southeastern Asia, the durian is an everyday food and portrayed in the local media in accordance with the cultural perception it has in the region. The durian symbolised the subjective nature of ugliness and beauty in Hong Kong director Fruit Chan's 2000 film Durian Durian (榴槤飄飄, lau lin piu piu), and was a nickname for the reckless but lovable protagonist of the eponymous Singaporean TV comedy Durian King played by Adrian Pang. Likewise, the oddly shaped Esplanade building in Singapore is often called "The Durian" by locals, and "The Big Durian" is the nickname of Jakarta, Indonesia.

 

One of the names Thailand contributed to the list of storm names for Western North Pacific tropical cyclones was 'Durian', which was retired after the second storm of this name in 2006. Being a fruit much loved by a variety of wild beasts, the durian sometimes signifies the long-forgotten animalistic aspect of humans, as in the legend of Orang Mawas, the Malaysian version of Bigfoot, and Orang Pendek, its Sumatran version, both of which have been claimed to feast on durians.

 

Frozen whole durians are shipped from Thailand to Asian markets and Chinatowns in Western countries.

 

WIKIPEDIA

Places / Germany / Baden-Wurttemberg / Tuebingen

Highest position: 255 on Friday, January 9, 2015

original!

  

bighugelabs.com/scout.php?mode=history&id=16041233569

 

Mondphase und Mondstand

am

8.1.2015

 

stand der Mond im Sternzeichen:

Löwe ♂

bei (Phase):

abnehmendem Mond (3. Viertel)

abnehmend bis

bis Dienstag 20.01.2015 -

 

--------

 

1. Vollmond:

2015

Schneemond

war am 5-1- 2015 - 6:00 Uhr

 

Nutzen Sie Voll- und Neumondtage als Fastentage ( z.B. Saftfasten o.ä.) bis zum Dienstag 20.01.2015.

 

Beginnen Sie Ihre Diät bei abnehmendem Mond z.B. direkt nach dem Vollmond. Der Körper entschlackt, entgiftet und entwässert in dieser Mondphase am besten. Es ist einfacher überhaupt anzufangen, geht müheloser und schneller.

 

Stimmt!

Effi

 

Auch wenn Sie Sportlernahrung oder Nahrungsergänzung zu sich nehmen, wird es wahrscheinlich nicht schaden, den Mond zu berücksichtigen ;-)

Raspberry ketone

Das Himbeer-Keton kommt auch im Tabakrauch vor, wobei es im Tabak selbst nicht gefunden wurde.

 

It is one of the most expensive natural flavor components used in the food industry. The natural compound can cost as much as $20,000 per kg.

  

de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Himbeerketon

 

4-(4-Hydroxyphenyl)butan-2-on, Frambinon, Oxyphenalon, Rheosmin

Summenformal: C-10 H-12 O-2

 

-

  

Views about 10.000 clicks

tags/views10000/

 

---

listed on

www.flickr.com/explore/2015/01/08

---

THE EXPLORE GROUP

 

www.flickr.com/groups/inexplore/pool/

___

 

From Raw-file, ".CR2", aka "Canon-Raw-File"

 

The CR2 file type is primarily associated with 'Canon Digital Camera' by Canon, Inc.. Raw image format for some Canon digital cameras. Raw images are basically the data as it comes directly from the CCD detector in the camera. Raw files can also contain text information about the picture and conditions in the camera when the picture was taken. These images are based on the TIFF image standard. Konvertor will display these EXIF metadata.

  

www.graphicregion.com/ablerawer.htm

 

converted by Faststone viewer IMG_2911

- hand-held

- with hands fixed on the wall,

 

- taken with the articulated display control

as good as it gets

Besser ging es nicht!

***

Jetzt bin ich mit der Canon SX60 d'accord.

Diese angemessene Qualität einer Bridge Kamera wollte ich unbedingt haben.

 

Den Vergleich mit der SX50 hat sie überwunden, wenn auch nur mit RAW-File!

Ein Quantensprung seit der Vorstellung der Canon Powershot SX1 von 2009.

 

Im Super-macro-modus (f/2,8), Foliage Modus für natürliche Farben und Sonneuntergang Modus ist die SX1 allerdings immer noch super!

 

weitreichenden Dioptrienausgleich: -6.0 bis +2.0 dpt (SX1)

 

Manches hat die SX60 nicht mehr genauso gut wie die Vorgänger-Modelle!

 

***

  

Canon PowerShot SX60 HS,

Canon, PowerShot, SX60, HS, Bridgecamera, bridge, camera, Canon PowerShot SX60, Canon SX60,Powershot SX60,SX60HS,eagle1effi, Powershot SX60,

 

Vorteil raw

Record Mode CR2+JPEG

Continuous Drive- Continuous 4.8 fps

postprocessing

Raw lässt sich 50% nachschärfen

JPG nur 15%

 

-

Camera Canon PowerShot SX60 HS

 

www.flickr.com/search/?q=sx60

 

Exposure 0.017 sec (1/60)

Aperture f/6.5

Focal Length 247 mm ~1365 mm analog 35 mm film

ISO Speed 100

Exposure Bias - 1/3 EV

..

daily

File Number 612-2911

...

How do you actually visit the full 500 Explore list of any past date?

December 2014

 

www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/2014/12/

January 2015

 

www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/2015/01/

I did the Peacocks and Kites 300km Audax from Cardiff on Saturday. It was my first solo Audax, my first long ride on the Graft, and I ended up being joint first person back. I had a very nice time.

 

It started at 5.00am with a thunder storm and torrential rain soaking us to the skin. The sun came out by midday but I was pretty wet so I was glad to press on and keep myself warm. I didn't stop at the controls any longer than it took to nip to the loo, get my card stamped, and fill my bottles, and it saved me loads of time. Everyone was stopping to fuel up on breafast and cake but I just ate from my bag on my bars as I went. I had a 4 egg omelette for breakfast before I left at 4.30am and then througout the day I munched my way though 4 sausages, 60g cheese, 150g cashew nuts, and 25g 85% dark chocolate. Nothing else. I drank 10L of water most with zero calorie salt magnesium tablets in. I wasn't hungry and I felt good. I measured my ketones up at 3.9mmol at lunch time so I knew my body was working hard to keep me well fuelled on fat. The hills were pretty tiring and my legs were empty of glycogen by the time I got to the ridiculously steep climb around 250km. I made it up without getting off, just, then I punctured coming down the other side. Gary wasn't far behind and came past just as I was setting off. I caught up with him and we rode back together, pulling down the gradual hill in to a slight headwind all the way back to Cardiff, our chains both squeeling away since the lube washed off at around 200km.

 

Tracklog on Strava:

www.strava.com/activities/151022808

BZ-GT-36

Exact Cross Beringen 2024

Beringen

I tested my son's blood glucose last nite before bed and his blood formed a heart on his thumb. Yes, you counted right (16 finger pricks on a sick day). Gotta flush out the ketones and test, test, test to maintain good BG levels.

The NYC King "KET ONE". Throwie of his.. fresh as hell.

This bull is in must, an obvious sign being the liquid coming down from his cheek. Normally placid bulls can be very aggressive during this time because they have up to 60 times more testosterone flowing through them.

 

Some more information from Wiki: Often, elephants in musth discharge a thick tar-like secretion called temporin from the temporal ducts on the sides of the head. Temporin contains proteins, lipids (notably cholesterol), phenol and 4-methyl phenol, cresols and sesquiterpenes (notably farnesol and its derivatives). Secretions and urine collected from zoo elephants have been shown to contain elevated levels of various highly odorous ketones and aldehydes. The elephant's aggression may be partially caused by a reaction to the temporin, which naturally trickles down into the elephant's mouth. Another contributing factor may be the accompanying swelling of the temporal glands; this presses on the elephant's eyes and causes acute pain comparable to severe root abscess toothache. Elephants sometimes try to counteract this pain by digging their tusks into the ground."

 

Here the elephant was rubbing his tusks and face up against the tree trunk, and then proceeded to rub his back up against the same tree before moving on.

 

Our guide actually started to get nervous for a little compact car that got directly in the way of this big bull as it looked like he was trying to cross the road. Bulls have been known to flip small cars several times, knocking them off the road several hundred feet.

 

When your mind becomes a blank canvas!

 

Memory loss is often one of the first signs of dementia. Initially, memory lapses may be mistaken for the normal forgetfulness that often increases as people grow older or when they become very stressed. However, in someone with dementia it will gradually become apparent that the memory problems are becoming more severe and persistent. They will also be accompanied by changes in thinking and feeling that make it more difficult to cope with everyday life.

 

Memory loss, as with any other aspect of dementia, affects each person differently. For example, some people with dementia retain certain skills until quite a late stage. They may recall a surprising range of facts or experiences, especially earlier memories, even though they are very forgetful about other things such as recent events or familiar situations.

  

We all know that a poor diet causes weight gain, heart disease and diabetes. But did you know that your brain can be affected by your diet just as much as your waistline can? Fortunately, as a healthy diet can help you shed unwanted pounds, it can also prevent unwanted memory loss. By “feeding” your brain the nutrients it needs, you can actually improve your memory and thwart the development of dementia, including Alzheimer’s.

 

Studies show a ketogenic diet can slow and even reverse symptoms of memory loss and cognitive impairment throughout all the dementia stages. You might be asking, “What is a ketogenic diet?” A ketogenic diet is a high-fat, adequate-protein, and low-carbohydrate diet that produces ketones – compounds the body can use to produce energy. Ketones have been shown in studies to be neuroprotective, meaning they “defend” your brain from degenerating.

 

Why does a ketogenic diet show promise? Research clearly establishes a strong link between blood sugar disorders and the various dementia stages, including memory loss, mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and Alzheimer’s. The most predominate blood sugar disorders are insulin resistance and diabetes. In fact, the link is so obvious some researchers have labeled Alzheimer ’s disease as “type 3 diabetes”.

 

Further information at:

www.naturalhealthadvisory.com/daily/cognitive-decline-and...

Acetanisole, Acetic Acid, Acetoin, Acetophenone, 6-Acetoxydihydrotheaspirane, 2-Acetyl-3- Ethylpyrazine, 2-Acetyl-5-Methylfuran, Acetylpyrazine, 2-Acetylpyridine, 3-Acetylpyridine, 2-Acetylthiazole, Aconitic Acid, dl-Alanine, Alfalfa Extract, Allspice Extract, Oleoresin, And Oil, Allyl Hexanoate, Allyl Ionone, Almond Bitter Oil, Ambergris Tincture, Ammonia, Ammonium Bicarbonate, Ammonium Hydroxide, Ammonium Phosphate Dibasic, Ammonium Sulfide, Amyl Alcohol, Amyl Butyrate, Amyl Formate, Amyl Octanoate, alpha-Amylcinnamaldehyde, Amyris Oil, trans-Anethole, Angelica Root Extract, Oil and Seed Oil, Anise, Anise Star, Extract and Oils, Anisyl Acetate, Anisyl Alcohol, Anisyl Formate, Anisyl Phenylacetate, Apple Juice Concentrate, Extract, and Skins, Apricot Extract and Juice Concentrate, 1-Arginine, Asafetida Fluid Extract And Oil, Ascorbic Acid, 1-Asparagine Monohydrate, 1-Aspartic Acid, Balsam Peru and Oil, Basil Oil, Bay Leaf, Oil and Sweet Oil, Beeswax White, Beet Juice Concentrate, Benzaldehyde, Benzaldehyde Glyceryl Acetal, Benzoic Acid, Benzoin, Benzoin Resin, Benzophenone, Benzyl Alcohol, Benzyl Benzoate, Benzyl Butyrate, Benzyl Cinnamate, Benzyl Propionate, Benzyl Salicylate, Bergamot Oil, Bisabolene, Black Currant Buds Absolute, Borneol, Bornyl Acetate, Buchu Leaf Oil, 1,3-Butanediol, 2,3-Butanedione, 1-Butanol, 2-Butanone, 4(2-Butenylidene)-3,5,5-Trimethyl-2-Cyclohexen-1-One, Butter, Butter Esters, and Butter Oil, Butyl Acetate, Butyl Butyrate, Butyl Butyryl Lactate, Butyl Isovalerate, Butyl Phenylacetate, Butyl Undecylenate, 3-Butylidenephthalide, Butyric Acid, Cadinene, Caffeine, Calcium Carbonate, Camphene, Cananga Oil, Capsicum Oleoresin, Caramel Color, Caraway Oil, Carbon Dioxide, Cardamom Oleoresin, Extract, Seed Oil, and Powder, Carob Bean and Extract, beta-Carotene, Carrot Oil, Carvacrol, 4-Carvomenthenol, 1-Carvone, beta-Caryophyllene, beta-Caryophyllene Oxide, Cascarilla Oil and Bark Extract, Cassia Bark Oil, Cassie Absolute and Oil, Castoreum Extract, Tincture and Absolute, Cedar Leaf Oil, Cedarwood Oil Terpenes and Virginiana, Cedrol, Celery Seed Extract, Solid, Oil, And Oleoresin, Cellulose Fiber, Chamomile Flower Oil And Extract, Chicory Extract, Chocolate, Cinnamaldehyde, Cinnamic Acid, Cinnamon Leaf Oil, Bark Oil, and Extract, Cinnamyl Acetate, Cinnamyl Alcohol, Cinnamyl Cinnamate, Cinnamyl Isovalerate, Cinnamyl Propionate, Citral, Citric Acid, Citronella Oil, dl-Citronellol, Citronellyl Butyrate, Citronellyl Isobutyrate, Civet Absolute, Clary Oil, Clover Tops, Red Solid Extract, Cocoa, Cocoa Shells, Extract, Distillate And Powder, Coconut Oil, Coffee, Cognac White and Green Oil, Copaiba Oil, Coriander Extract and Oil, Corn Oil, Corn Silk, Costus Root Oil, Cubeb Oil, Cuminaldehyde, para-Cymene, 1-Cysteine, Dandelion Root Solid Extract, Davana Oil, 2-trans, 4-trans-Decadienal, delta-Decalactone, gamma-Decalactone, Decanal, Decanoic Acid, 1-Decanol, 2-Decenal, Dehydromenthofurolactone, Diethyl Malonate, Diethyl Sebacate, 2,3-Diethylpyrazine, Dihydro Anethole, 5,7-Dihydro-2-Methylthieno(3,4-D) Pyrimidine, Dill Seed Oil and Extract, meta-Dimethoxybenzene, para-Dimethoxybenzene, 2,6-Dimethoxyphenol, Dimethyl Succinate, 3,4-Dimethyl-1,2-Cyclopentanedione, 3,5- Dimethyl-1,2-Cyclopentanedione, 3,7-Dimethyl-1,3,6-Octatriene, 4,5-Dimethyl-3-Hydroxy-2,5-Dihydrofuran-2-One, 6,10-Dimethyl-5,9-Undecadien-2-One, 3,7-Dimethyl-6-Octenoic Acid, 2,4-Dimethylacetophenone, alpha,para-Dimethylbenzyl Alcohol, alpha,alpha-Dimethylphenethyl Acetate, alpha,alpha Dimethylphenethyl Butyrate, 2,3-Dimethylpyrazine, 2,5-Dimethylpyrazine, 2,6-Dimethylpyrazine, Dimethyltetrahydrobenzofuranone, delta-Dodecalactone, gamma-Dodecalactone, para-Ethoxybenzaldehyde, Ethyl 10-Undecenoate, Ethyl 2-Methylbutyrate, Ethyl Acetate, Ethyl Acetoacetate, Ethyl Alcohol, Ethyl Benzoate, Ethyl Butyrate, Ethyl Cinnamate, Ethyl Decanoate, Ethyl Fenchol, Ethyl Furoate, Ethyl Heptanoate, Ethyl Hexanoate, Ethyl Isovalerate, Ethyl Lactate, Ethyl Laurate, Ethyl Levulinate, Ethyl Maltol, Ethyl Methyl Phenylglycidate, Ethyl Myristate, Ethyl Nonanoate, Ethyl Octadecanoate, Ethyl Octanoate, Ethyl Oleate, Ethyl Palmitate, Ethyl Phenylacetate, Ethyl Propionate, Ethyl Salicylate, Ethyl trans-2-Butenoate, Ethyl Valerate, Ethyl Vanillin, 2-Ethyl (or Methyl)-(3,5 and 6)-Methoxypyrazine, 2-Ethyl-1-Hexanol, 3-Ethyl -2 -Hydroxy-2-Cyclopenten-1-One, 2-Ethyl-3, (5 or 6)-Dimethylpyrazine, 5-Ethyl-3-Hydroxy-4-Methyl-2(5H)-Furanone, 2-Ethyl-3-Methylpyrazine, 4-Ethylbenzaldehyde, 4-Ethylguaiacol, para-Ethylphenol, 3-Ethylpyridine, Eucalyptol, Farnesol, D-Fenchone, Fennel Sweet Oil, Fenugreek, Extract, Resin, and Absolute, Fig Juice Concentrate, Food Starch Modified, Furfuryl Mercaptan, 4-(2-Furyl)-3-Buten-2-One, Galbanum Oil, Genet Absolute, Gentian Root Extract, Geraniol, Geranium Rose Oil, Geranyl Acetate, Geranyl Butyrate, Geranyl Formate, Geranyl Isovalerate, Geranyl Phenylacetate, Ginger Oil and Oleoresin, 1-Glutamic Acid, 1-Glutamine, Glycerol, Glycyrrhizin Ammoniated, Grape Juice Concentrate, Guaiac Wood Oil, Guaiacol, Guar Gum, 2,4-Heptadienal, gamma-Heptalactone, Heptanoic Acid, 2-Heptanone, 3-Hepten-2-One, 2-Hepten-4-One, 4-Heptenal, trans -2-Heptenal, Heptyl Acetate, omega-6-Hexadecenlactone, gamma-Hexalactone, Hexanal, Hexanoic Acid, 2-Hexen-1-Ol, 3-Hexen-1-Ol, cis-3-Hexen-1-Yl Acetate, 2-Hexenal, 3-Hexenoic Acid, trans-2-Hexenoic Acid, cis-3-Hexenyl Formate, Hexyl 2-Methylbutyrate, Hexyl Acetate, Hexyl Alcohol, Hexyl Phenylacetate, 1-Histidine, Honey, Hops Oil, Hydrolyzed Milk Solids, Hydrolyzed Plant Proteins, 5-Hydroxy-2,4-Decadienoic Acid delta- Lactone, 4-Hydroxy-2,5-Dimethyl-3(2H)-Furanone, 2-Hydroxy-3,5,5-Trimethyl-2-Cyclohexen-1-One, 4-Hydroxy -3-Pentenoic Acid Lactone, 2-Hydroxy-4-Methylbenzaldehyde, 4-Hydroxybutanoic Acid Lactone, Hydroxycitronellal, 6-Hydroxydihydrotheaspirane, 4-(para-Hydroxyphenyl)-2-Butanone, Hyssop Oil, Immortelle Absolute and Extract, alpha-Ionone, beta-Ionone, alpha-Irone, Isoamyl Acetate, Isoamyl Benzoate, Isoamyl Butyrate, Isoamyl Cinnamate, Isoamyl Formate, Isoamyl Hexanoate, Isoamyl Isovalerate, Isoamyl Octanoate, Isoamyl Phenylacetate, Isobornyl Acetate, Isobutyl Acetate, Isobutyl Alcohol, Isobutyl Cinnamate, Isobutyl Phenylacetate, Isobutyl Salicylate, 2-Isobutyl-3-Methoxypyrazine, alpha-Isobutylphenethyl Alcohol, Isobutyraldehyde, Isobutyric Acid, d,l-Isoleucine, alpha-Isomethylionone, 2-Isopropylphenol, Isovaleric Acid, Jasmine Absolute, Concrete and Oil, Kola Nut Extract, Labdanum Absolute and Oleoresin, Lactic Acid, Lauric Acid, Lauric Aldehyde, Lavandin Oil, Lavender Oil, Lemon Oil and Extract, Lemongrass Oil, 1-Leucine, Levulinic Acid, Licorice Root, Fluid, Extract and Powder, Lime Oil , Linalool, Linalool Oxide, Linalyl Acetate, Linden Flowers, Lovage Oil And Extract, 1-Lysine, Mace Powder, Extract and Oil , Magnesium Carbonate, Malic Acid, Malt and Malt Extract, Maltodextrin, Maltol, Maltyl Isobutyrate, Mandarin Oil, Maple Syrup and Concentrate, Mate Leaf, Absolute and Oil, para-Mentha-8-Thiol-3-One, Menthol, Menthone, Menthyl Acetate, dl-Methionine, Methoprene, 2-Methoxy-4-Methylphenol, 2-Methoxy-4-Vinylphenol, para-Methoxybenzaldehyde, 1-(para-Methoxyphenyl)-1-Penten-3-One, 4-(para-Methoxyphenyl)-2-Butanone, 1-(para-Methoxyphenyl)-2-Propanone, Methoxypyrazine, Methyl 2-Furoate, Methyl 2-Octynoate, Methyl 2-Pyrrolyl Ketone, Methyl Anisate, Methyl Anthranilate, Methyl Benzoate, Methyl Cinnamate, Methyl Dihydrojasmonate, Methyl Ester of Rosin, Partially Hydrogenated, Methyl Isovalerate, Methyl Linoleate (48%), Methyl Linolenate (52%) Mixture, Methyl Naphthyl Ketone, Methyl Nicotinate, Methyl Phenylacetate, Methyl Salicylate, Methyl Sulfide, 3-Methyl-1-Cyclopentadecanone, 4-Methyl-1-Phenyl-2-Pentanone, 5-Methyl-2-Phenyl-2-Hexenal, 5-Methyl-2-Thiophenecarboxaldehyde, 6-Methyl-3,-5-Heptadien-2-One, 2-Methyl-3-(para-Isopropylphenyl) Propionaldehyde, 5-Methyl-3-Hexen-2-One, 1-Methyl-3Methoxy-4-Isopropylbenzene, 4-Methyl-3-Pentene-2-One, 2-Methyl-4-Phenylbutyraldehyde, 6-Methyl-5-Hepten-2-One, 4-Methyl-5-Thiazoleethanol, 4-Methyl-5-Vinylthiazole, Methyl-alpha-Ionone, Methyl-trans-2-Butenoic Acid, 4-Methylacetophenone, para-Methylanisole, alpha-Methylbenzyl Acetate, alpha-Methylbenzyl Alcohol, 2-Methylbutyraldehyde, 3-Methylbutyraldehyde, 2-Methylbutyric Acid, alpha-Methylcinnamaldehyde, Methylcyclopentenolone, 2-Methylheptanoic Acid, 2-Methylhexanoic Acid, 3-Methylpentanoic Acid, 4-Methylpentanoic Acid, 2-Methylpyrazine, 5-Methylquinoxaline, 2-Methyltetrahydrofuran-3-One, (Methylthio)Methylpyrazine (Mixture Of Isomers), 3-Methylthiopropionaldehyde, Methyl 3-Methylthiopropionate, 2-Methylvaleric Acid, Mimosa Absolute and Extract, Molasses Extract and Tincture, Mountain Maple Solid Extract, Mullein Flowers, Myristaldehyde, Myristic Acid, Myrrh Oil, beta-Napthyl Ethyl Ether, Nerol, Neroli Bigarde Oil, Nerolidol, Nona-2-trans,6-cis-Dienal, 2,6-Nonadien-1-Ol, gamma-Nonalactone, Nonanal, Nonanoic Acid, Nonanone, trans-2-Nonen-1-Ol, 2-Nonenal, Nonyl Acetate, Nutmeg Powder and Oil, Oak Chips Extract and Oil, Oak Moss Absolute, 9,12-Octadecadienoic Acid (48%) And 9,12,15-Octadecatrienoic Acid (52%), delta-Octalactone, gamma-Octalactone, Octanal, Octanoic Acid, 1-Octanol, 2-Octanone, 3-Octen-2-One, 1-Octen-3-Ol, 1-Octen-3-Yl Acetate, 2-Octenal, Octyl Isobutyrate, Oleic Acid , Olibanum Oil, Opoponax Oil And Gum, Orange Blossoms Water, Absolute, and Leaf Absolute, Orange Oil and Extract, Origanum Oil, Orris Concrete Oil and Root Extract, Palmarosa Oil, Palmitic Acid, Parsley Seed Oil, Patchouli Oil, omega-Pentadecalactone, 2,3-Pentanedione, 2-Pentanone, 4-Pentenoic Acid, 2-Pentylpyridine, Pepper Oil, Black And White, Peppermint Oil, Peruvian (Bois De Rose) Oil, Petitgrain Absolute, Mandarin Oil and Terpeneless Oil, alpha-Phellandrene, 2-Phenenthyl Acetate, Phenenthyl Alcohol, Phenethyl Butyrate, Phenethyl Cinnamate, Phenethyl Isobutyrate, Phenethyl Isovalerate, Phenethyl Phenylacetate, Phenethyl Salicylate, 1-Phenyl-1-Propanol, 3-Phenyl-1-Propanol, 2-Phenyl-2-Butenal, 4-Phenyl-3-Buten-2-Ol, 4-Phenyl-3-Buten-2-One, Phenylacetaldehyde, Phenylacetic Acid, 1-Phenylalanine, 3-Phenylpropionaldehyde, 3-Phenylpropionic Acid, 3-Phenylpropyl Acetate, 3-Phenylpropyl Cinnamate, 2-(3-Phenylpropyl)Tetrahydrofuran, Phosphoric Acid, Pimenta Leaf Oil, Pine Needle Oil, Pine Oil, Scotch, Pineapple Juice Concentrate, alpha-Pinene, beta-Pinene, D-Piperitone, Piperonal, Pipsissewa Leaf Extract, Plum Juice, Potassium Sorbate, 1-Proline, Propenylguaethol, Propionic Acid, Propyl Acetate, Propyl para-Hydroxybenzoate, Propylene Glycol, 3-Propylidenephthalide, Prune Juice and Concentrate, Pyridine, Pyroligneous Acid And Extract, Pyrrole, Pyruvic Acid, Raisin Juice Concentrate, Rhodinol, Rose Absolute and Oil, Rosemary Oil, Rum, Rum Ether, Rye Extract, Sage, Sage Oil, and Sage Oleoresin, Salicylaldehyde, Sandalwood Oil, Yellow, Sclareolide, Skatole, Smoke Flavor, Snakeroot Oil, Sodium Acetate, Sodium Benzoate, Sodium Bicarbonate, Sodium Carbonate, Sodium Chloride, Sodium Citrate, Sodium Hydroxide, Solanone, Spearmint Oil, Styrax Extract, Gum and Oil, Sucrose Octaacetate, Sugar Alcohols, Sugars, Tagetes Oil, Tannic Acid, Tartaric Acid, Tea Leaf and Absolute, alpha-Terpineol, Terpinolene, Terpinyl Acetate, 5,6,7,8-Tetrahydroquinoxaline, 1,5,5,9-Tetramethyl-13-Oxatricyclo(8.3.0.0(4,9))Tridecane, 2,3,4,5, and 3,4,5,6-Tetramethylethyl-Cyclohexanone, 2,3,5,6-Tetramethylpyrazine, Thiamine Hydrochloride, Thiazole, 1-Threonine, Thyme Oil, White and Red, Thymol, Tobacco Extracts, Tochopherols (mixed), Tolu Balsam Gum and Extract, Tolualdehydes, para-Tolyl 3-Methylbutyrate, para-Tolyl Acetaldehyde, para-Tolyl Acetate, para-Tolyl Isobutyrate, para-Tolyl Phenylacetate, Triacetin, 2-Tridecanone, 2-Tridecenal, Triethyl Citrate, 3,5,5-Trimethyl -1-Hexanol, para,alpha,alpha-Trimethylbenzyl Alcohol, 4-(2,6,6-Trimethylcyclohex-1-Enyl)But-2-En-4-One, 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1200 x 1000 - crop - ppc

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original

www.flickr.com/photos/eagle1effi/16041233569/in/photostream/

 

Places / Germany / Baden-Wurttemberg / Tuebingen

Highest position: 255 on Friday, January 9, 2015

 

bighugelabs.com/scout.php?mode=history&id=16041233569

 

Mondphase und Mondstand

am

8.1.2015

 

stand der Mond im Sternzeichen:

Löwe ♂

bei (Phase):

abnehmendem Mond (3. Viertel)

abnehmend bis

bis Dienstag 20.01.2015 -

 

--------

 

1. Vollmond:

2015

Schneemond

war am 5-1- 2015 - 6:00 Uhr

 

Nutzen Sie Voll- und Neumondtage als Fastentage ( z.B. Saftfasten o.ä.) bis zum Dienstag 20.01.2015.

 

Beginnen Sie Ihre Diät bei abnehmendem Mond z.B. direkt nach dem Vollmond. Der Körper entschlackt, entgiftet und entwässert in dieser Mondphase am besten. Es ist einfacher überhaupt anzufangen, geht müheloser und schneller.

 

Stimmt!

Effi

 

Auch wenn Sie Sportlernahrung oder Nahrungsergänzung zu sich nehmen, wird es wahrscheinlich nicht schaden, den Mond zu berücksichtigen ;-)

Raspberry ketone

Das Himbeer-Keton kommt auch im Tabakrauch vor, wobei es im Tabak selbst nicht gefunden wurde.

 

It is one of the most expensive natural flavor components used in the food industry. The natural compound can cost as much as $20,000 per kg.

  

de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Himbeerketon

 

4-(4-Hydroxyphenyl)butan-2-on, Frambinon, Oxyphenalon, Rheosmin

Summenformal: C-10 H-12 O-2

 

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Views about 10.000 clicks

tags/views10000/

 

---

listed on

www.flickr.com/explore/2015/01/08

---

THE EXPLORE GROUP

 

www.flickr.com/groups/inexplore/pool/

___

 

From Raw-file, ".CR2", aka "Canon-Raw-File"

 

The CR2 file type is primarily associated with 'Canon Digital Camera' by Canon, Inc.. Raw image format for some Canon digital cameras. Raw images are basically the data as it comes directly from the CCD detector in the camera. Raw files can also contain text information about the picture and conditions in the camera when the picture was taken. These images are based on the TIFF image standard. Konvertor will display these EXIF metadata.

  

www.graphicregion.com/ablerawer.htm

 

converted by Faststone viewer IMG_2911

- hand-held

- with hands fixed on the wall,

 

- taken with the articulated display control

as good as it gets

Besser ging es nicht!

***

Jetzt bin ich mit der Canon SX60 d'accord.

Diese angemessene Qualität einer Bridge Kamera wollte ich unbedingt haben.

 

Den Vergleich mit der SX50 hat sie überwunden, wenn auch nur mit RAW-File!

Ein Quantensprung seit der Vorstellung der Canon Powershot SX1 von 2009.

 

Im Super-macro-modus (f/2,8), Foliage Modus für natürliche Farben und Sonneuntergang Modus ist die SX1 allerdings immer noch super!

 

weitreichenden Dioptrienausgleich: -6.0 bis +2.0 dpt (SX1)

 

Manches hat die SX60 nicht mehr genauso gut wie die Vorgänger-Modelle!

 

***

  

Canon PowerShot SX60 HS,

Canon, PowerShot, SX60, HS, Bridgecamera, bridge, camera, Canon PowerShot SX60, Canon SX60,Powershot SX60,SX60HS,eagle1effi, Powershot SX60,

 

Vorteil raw

Record Mode CR2+JPEG

Continuous Drive- Continuous 4.8 fps

postprocessing

Raw lässt sich 50% nachschärfen

JPG nur 15%

 

-

Camera Canon PowerShot SX60 HS

 

www.flickr.com/search/?q=sx60

 

Exposure 0.017 sec (1/60)

Aperture f/6.5

Focal Length 247 mm ~1365 mm analog 35 mm film

ISO Speed 100

Exposure Bias - 1/3 EV

..

daily

File Number 612-2911

...

How do you actually visit the full 500 Explore list of any past date?

December 2014

 

www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/2014/12/

January 2015

 

www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/2015/01/

. . . because of it´s taste it is the king of fruits!

Size is up to 30 cm long and 3 kg in weight.

______________________________

 

The durian (/ˈdjʊriən/) is the fruit of several tree species belonging to the genus Durio. The name 'durian' is derived from the Malay-Indonesian languages word for duri or "spike", a reference to the numerous spike protuberances of the fruit, together with the noun-building suffix -an. There are 30 recognised Durio species, at least nine of which produce edible fruit. Durio zibethinus is the only species available in the international market: other species are sold in their local regions.

 

Regarded by many people in southeast Asia as the "king of fruits", the durian is distinctive for its large size, strong odour, and formidable thorn-covered husk. The fruit can grow as large as 30 centimetres long and 15 centimetres in diameter, and it typically weighs one to three kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale yellow to red, depending on the species.

 

The edible flesh emits a distinctive odour that is strong and penetrating even when the husk is intact. Some people regard the durian as having a pleasantly sweet fragrance; others find the aroma overpowering and revolting. The smell evokes reactions from deep appreciation to intense disgust, and has been described variously as rotten onions, turpentine, and raw sewage. The persistence of its odour has led to the fruit's banishment from certain hotels and public transportation in Southeast Asia.

 

The durian, native to Southeast Asia, has been known to the Western world for about 600 years. The nineteenth-century British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace described its flesh as "a rich custard highly flavoured with almonds". The flesh can be consumed at various stages of ripeness, and it is used to flavour a wide variety of savoury and sweet edibles in Southeast Asian cuisines. The seeds can also be eaten when cooked.

 

There are hundreds of durian cultivars; many consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

 

TAXONOMY

The genus Durio is placed by some taxonomists in the family Bombacaceae, or by others in a broadly defined Malvaceae that includes Bombacaceae, and by others in a smaller family of just seven genera Durionaceae.

 

DESCRIPTION

Durian trees are large, growing to 25–50 metres in height depending on the species. The leaves are evergreen, elliptic to oblong and 10–18 centimetres long. The flowers are produced in three to thirty clusters together on large branches and directly on the trunk with each flower having a calyx (sepals) and five (rarely four or six) petals. Durian trees have one or two flowering and fruiting periods per year, although the timing varies depending on the species, cultivars, and localities. A typical durian tree can bear fruit after four or five years. The durian fruit can hang from any branch and matures roughly three months after pollination. The fruit can grow up to 30 centimetres long and 15 centimetres (6 in) in diameter, and typically weighs one to three kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale-yellow to red, depending on the species. Among the thirty known species of Durio, nine of them have been identified as producing edible fruits: D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. grandiflorus, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. macrantha, D. oxleyanus, and D. testudinarum. There are many species for which the fruit has never been collected or properly examined, however, so other species with edible fruit may exist. The durian is somewhat similar in appearance to the jackfruit, an unrelated species.

 

The name durian comes from the Malay word duri (thorn) together with the suffix -an (for building a noun in Malay). D. zibethinus is the only species commercially cultivated on a large scale and available outside of its native region. Since this species is open-pollinated, it shows considerable diversity in fruit colour and odour, size of flesh and seed, and tree phenology. In the species name, zibethinus refers to the Indian civet, Viverra zibetha. There is disagreement regarding whether this name, bestowed by Linnaeus, refers to civets being so fond of the durian that the fruit was used as bait to entrap them, or to the durian smelling like the civet.

 

Durian flowers are large and feathery with copious nectar, and give off a heavy, sour, and buttery odour. These features are typical of flowers pollinated by certain species of bats that eat nectar and pollen. According to research conducted in Malaysia in the 1970s, durians were pollinated almost exclusively by cave fruit bats (Eonycteris spelaea); however, a 1996 study indicated two species, D. grandiflorus and D. oblongus, were pollinated by spiderhunters (Nectariniidae) and another species, D. kutejensis, was pollinated by giant honey bees and birds as well as bats.

 

CULTIVARS

Over the centuries, numerous durian cultivars, propagated by vegetative clones, have arisen in southeast Asia. They used to be grown with mixed results from seeds of trees bearing superior quality fruit, but now are propagated by layering, marcotting, or more commonly, by grafting, including bud, veneer, wedge, whip or U-grafting onto seedlings of randomly selected rootstocks. Different cultivars may be distinguished to some extent by variations in the fruit shape, such as the shape of the spines. Durian consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

 

Most cultivars have a common name and a code number starting with "D". For example, some popular clones are Kop (D99 Thai: กบ – "frog" [kòp]), Chanee (D123, Thai: ชะนี – gibbon [tɕʰániː]), Berserah or Green Durian or Tuan Mek Hijau (D145 Thai: ทุเรียนเขียว – Green Durian [tʰúriːən kʰǐow]), Kan Yao (D158, Thai: ก้านยาว – Long Stem [kâːn jaːw]), Mon Thong (D159, Thai: หมอนทอง – Golden Pillow [mɔ̌ːn tʰɔːŋ]), Kradum Thong (Thai: กระดุมทอง – Golden Button [kràdum tʰɔːŋ]), and with no common name, D24 and D169. Each cultivar has a distinct taste and odour. More than 200 cultivars of D. zibethinus exist in Thailand.

 

Mon thong is the most commercially sought after for its thick, full-bodied creamy and mild sweet tasting flesh with relatively moderate smell emitted and smaller seeds, while Chanee is the best in terms of its resistance to infection by Phytophthora palmivora. Kan Yao is somewhat less common, but prized for its longer window of time when it is both sweet and odorless at the same time. Among all the cultivars in Thailand, five are currently in large-scale commercial cultivation: Chanee, Mon Thong, Kan Yao, Ruang, and Kradum. There are more than 100 registered cultivars since 1920's in Malaysia and up to 193 cultivar by 1992, and many superior cultivars have been identified through competitions held at the annual Malaysian Agriculture, Horticulture, and Agrotourism Show. In Vietnam, the same process has been achieved through competitions held by the Southern Fruit Research Institute. A recently popular variety is, Cat Mountain King or Musang King.

 

By 2007, Songpol Somsri, a Thai government scientist, had crossbred more than ninety varieties of durian to create Chantaburi No. 1, a cultivar without the characteristic odour. Another hybrid, Chantaburi No. 3, develops the odour about three days after the fruit is picked, which enables an odourless transport yet satisfies consumers who prefer the pungent odour. On 22 May 2012, two other cultivars from Thailand that also lack the usual odour, Long Laplae and Lin Laplae, were presented to the public by Yothin Samutkhiri, governor of Uttaradit province from where these cultivars were developed locally, while he announced the dates for the yearly durian fair of Laplae District, and the name giver to both cultivars.

 

Popular cultivars in Malaysia and Singapore (Singapore imports most of its durians from Malaysia hence the varieties are similar although there may be slight variation in the names) include "D24" which is a popular variety known for its bitter sweet taste; "XO" which has a pale color, thick flesh with a tinge of alcoholic fermentation; "Chook Kiok" (Cantonese meaning: bamboo leg) which has a distinctive yellowish core in the inner stem and "Musang King" ( Musang is the Malay word for civet cat) which is usually the priciest of all cultivars. Musang King has bright yellow flesh and is almost like a more potent or enhanced version of the D24. This particular variety should be consumed last since it tends to make other durians taste bland in comparison.

 

CULTIVATION AND AVAIBILITY

The durian is native to Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia.[8] There is some debate as to whether the durian is native to the Philippines, particularly the Davao region in the island of Mindanao, or was introduced. The durian is grown in other areas with a similar climate; it is strictly tropical and stops growing when mean daily temperatures drop below 22 °C.

 

The centre of ecological diversity for durians is the island of Borneo, where the fruit of the edible species of Durio including D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. oxleyanus and D. testudinarum is sold in local markets. In Brunei, D. zibethinus is not grown because consumers prefer other species such as D. graveolens, D. kutejensis and D. oxleyanus. These species are commonly distributed in Brunei, and together with other species like D. testudinarum and D. dulcis, represent rich genetic diversity.

 

Although the durian is not native to Thailand, the country is currently one of the major exporters of durians, growing 781,000 tonnes of the world's total harvest of 1,400,000 tonnes in 1999, 111,000 tonnes of which it exported to Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore and Canada. Malaysia and Indonesia follow, both producing about 265,000 tonnes each. Of this, Malaysia exported 35,000 tonnes in 1999. Chantaburi in Thailand each year holds the World Durian Festival in early May. This single province is responsible for half of the durian production of Thailand. In the Philippines, the centre of durian production is the Davao Region. The Kadayawan Festival is an annual celebration featuring the durian in Davao City. Other places where durian farms are located include Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, India, the West Indies, Florida, Hawaii, Papua New Guinea, the Polynesian Islands, Madagascar, southern China (Hainan Island), northern Australia, and Singapore.

 

Durian was introduced into Australia in the early 1960s and clonal material was first introduced in 1975. Over thirty clones of D. zibethinus and six Durio species have been subsequently introduced into Australia. China is the major importer, purchasing 65,000 tonnes in 1999, followed by Singapore with 40,000 tonnes and Taiwan with 5,000 tonnes. In the same year, the United States imported 2,000 tonnes, mostly frozen, and the European Community imported 500 tonnes.

 

The durian is a seasonal fruit, unlike some other non-seasonal tropical fruits such as the papaya, which are available throughout the year. In Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, the season for durians is typically from June to August, which coincides with that of the mangosteen. Prices of durians are relatively high as compared with other fruits. For example, in Singapore, the strong demand for high quality cultivars such as the D24, Sultan, and Mao Shan Wang has resulted in typical retail prices of between S$8 to S$15 (US$5 to US$10) per kilogram of whole fruit. With an average weight of about 1.5 kilograms, a durian fruit would therefore cost about S$12 to S$22 (US$8 to US$15). The edible portion of the fruit, known as the aril and usually referred to as the "flesh" or "pulp", only accounts for about 15–30% of the mass of the entire fruit. Many consumers in Singapore are nevertheless quite willing to spend up to around S$75 (US$50) on a single purchase of about half a dozen of the favoured fruit to be shared by family members.

 

In-season durians can be found in mainstream Japanese supermarkets, while in the West they are sold mainly by Asian markets.

 

FLAVOUR AND ODOUR

The unusual flavour and odour of the fruit have prompted many people to express diverse and passionate views ranging from deep appreciation to intense disgust. Writing in 1856, the British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace provided a much-quoted description of the flavour of the durian:

 

The five cells are silky-white within, and are filled with a mass of firm, cream-coloured pulp, containing about three seeds each. This pulp is the edible part, and its consistence and flavour are indescribable. A rich custard highly flavoured with almonds gives the best general idea of it, but there are occasional wafts of flavour that call to mind cream-cheese, onion-sauce, sherry-wine, and other incongruous dishes. Then there is a rich glutinous smoothness in the pulp which nothing else possesses, but which adds to its delicacy. It is neither acidic nor sweet nor juicy; yet it wants neither of these qualities, for it is in itself perfect. It produces no nausea or other bad effect, and the more you eat of it the less you feel inclined to stop. In fact, to eat Durians is a new sensation worth a voyage to the East to experience. ... as producing a food of the most exquisite flavour it is unsurpassed.

 

Wallace described himself as being at first reluctant to try it because of the aroma, "but in Borneo I found a ripe fruit on the ground, and, eating it out of doors, I at once became a confirmed Durian eater." He cited one traveller from 1599: "it is of such an excellent taste that it surpasses in flavour all other fruits of the world, according to those who have tasted it." He cites another writer: "To those not used to it, it seems at first to smell like rotten onions, but immediately after they have tasted it they prefer it to all other food. The natives give it honourable titles, exalt it, and make verses on it." Despite having tried many foods that are arguably more eccentric, Andrew Zimmern, host of Bizarre Foods, was unable to finish a durian upon sampling it, due to his intolerance of its strong taste.

 

While Wallace cautions that "the smell of the ripe fruit is certainly at first disagreeable", later descriptions by westerners are more graphic. Novelist Anthony Burgess writes that eating durian is "like eating sweet raspberry blancmange in the lavatory". Chef Andrew Zimmern compares the taste to "completely rotten, mushy onions". Anthony Bourdain, a lover of durian, relates his encounter with the fruit thus: "Its taste can only be described as...indescribable, something you will either love or despise. ...Your breath will smell as if you'd been French-kissing your dead grandmother." Likewise, fellow chef Jamie Oliver has also expressed admiration for the fruit on his first sampling. Travel and food writer Richard Sterling says:

 

... its odor is best described as pig-shit, turpentine and onions, garnished with a gym sock. It can be smelled from yards away. Despite its great local popularity, the raw fruit is forbidden from some establishments such as hotels, subways and airports, including public transportation in Southeast Asia.

 

Other comparisons have been made with the civet, sewage, stale vomit, skunk spray and used surgical swabs. The wide range of descriptions for the odour of durian may have a great deal to do with the variability of durian odour itself. Durians from different species or clones can have significantly different aromas; for example, red durian (D. dulcis) has a deep caramel flavour with a turpentine odour while red-fleshed durian (D. graveolens) emits a fragrance of roasted almonds. Among the varieties of D. zibethinus, Thai varieties are sweeter in flavour and less odorous than Malay ones. The degree of ripeness has an effect on the flavour as well. Three scientific analyses of the composition of durian aroma – from 1972, 1980, and 1995 – each found a mix of volatile compounds including esters, ketones, and different sulphur compounds, with no agreement on which may be primarily responsible for the distinctive odour. People in South East Asia with frequent exposures to durian are able to easily distinguish its sweet-like ketones and esters scent from rotten or putrescine odours which are from volatile amines and fatty acids. Developmental or genetic differences in olfactory perception and mapping within the brain ( for e.g. anterior piriform cortex to the orbitofrontal cortex) could possibly explain why some individuals are unable to differentiate these smells and find this fruit noxious.

 

This strong odour can be detected half a mile away by animals, thus luring them. In addition, the fruit is extremely appetising to a variety of animals, including squirrels, mouse deer, pigs, orangutan, elephants, and even carnivorous tigers. While some of these animals eat the fruit and dispose of the seed under the parent plant, others swallow the seed with the fruit and then transport it some distance before excreting, with the seed being dispersed as a result. The thorny, armoured covering of the fruit discourages smaller animals; larger animals are more likely to transport the seeds far from the parent tree.

 

RIPENESS AND SELECTION

According to Larousse Gastronomique, the durian fruit is ready to eat when its husk begins to crack. However, the ideal stage of ripeness to be enjoyed varies from region to region in Southeast Asia and by species. Some species grow so tall that they can only be collected once they have fallen to the ground, whereas most cultivars of D. zibethinus are nearly always cut from the tree and allowed to ripen while waiting to be sold. Some people in southern Thailand prefer their durians relatively young when the clusters of fruit within the shell are still crisp in texture and mild in flavour. For some people in northern Thailand, the preference is for the fruit to be soft and aromatic. In Malaysia and Singapore, most consumers prefer the fruit to be as ripe and pungent in aroma as possible and may even risk allowing the fruit to continue ripening after its husk has already cracked open. In this state, the flesh becomes richly creamy, slightly alcoholic, the aroma pronounced and the flavour highly complex.

 

The various preferences regarding ripeness among consumers make it hard to issue general statements about choosing a "good" durian. A durian that falls off the tree continues to ripen for two to four days, but after five or six days most would consider it overripe and unpalatable. The usual advice for a durian consumer choosing a whole fruit in the market is to examine the quality of the stem or stalk which loses moisture as it ages: a big, solid stem is a sign of freshness. Reportedly, unscrupulous merchants wrap, paint, or remove the stalks altogether. Due to the popularity of Kan Yao, street vendors may sometimes sell a lesser variety with a long stem to unsuspecting customers. Another frequent piece of advice is to shake the fruit and listen for the sound of the seeds moving within, indicating the durian is very ripe and the pulp has dried out a bit.

 

HISTORY

The durian has been known and consumed in Southeast Asia since prehistoric times, but has only been known to the western world for about 600 years. The earliest native reference to durian is the several bas relief panels of 9th-century Borobudur depicting durian as one of fruit offering for Javanese king, and also as one of the fruits sold in marketplace.

 

The earliest known European reference to the durian is the record of Niccolò Da Conti, who travelled to southeastern Asia in the 15th century. Translated from the Latin in which Poggio Bracciolini recorded Da Conti's travels: "They (people of Sumatra) have a green fruit which they call durian, as big as a watermelon. Inside there are five things like elongated oranges, and resembling thick butter, with a combination of flavours." The Portuguese physician Garcia de Orta described durians in Colóquios dos simples e drogas da India published in 1563. In 1741, Herbarium Amboinense by the German botanist Georg Eberhard Rumphius was published, providing the most detailed and accurate account of durians for over a century. The genus Durio has a complex taxonomy that has seen the subtraction and addition of many species since it was created by Rumphius. During the early stages of its taxonomical study, there was some confusion between durian and the soursop (Annona muricata), for both of these species had thorny green fruit. It is also interesting to note the Malay name for the soursop is durian Belanda, meaning Dutch durian. In the 18th century, Johann Anton Weinmann considered the durian to belong to Castaneae as its fruit was similar to the horse chestnut.

 

D. zibethinus was introduced into Ceylon by the Portuguese in the 16th century and was reintroduced many times later. It has been planted in the Americas but confined to botanical gardens. The first seedlings were sent from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, to Auguste Saint-Arroman of Dominica in 1884.

 

In southeastern Asia, the durian has been cultivated for centuries at the village level, probably since the late 18th century, and commercially since the mid-20th century. In My Tropic Isle, Australian author and naturalist Edmund James Banfield tells how, in the early 20th century, a friend in Singapore sent him a durian seed, which he planted and cared for on his tropical island off the north coast of Queensland.

 

In 1949, the British botanist E. J. H. Corner published The Durian Theory, or the Origin of the Modern Tree. His theory was that endozoochory (the enticement of animals to transport seeds in their stomach) arose before any other method of seed dispersal, and that primitive ancestors of Durio species were the earliest practitioners of that dispersal method, in particular red durian (D. dulcis) exemplifying the primitive fruit of flowering plants.

 

Since the early 1990s, the domestic and international demand for durian in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region has increased significantly, partly due to the increasing affluence of Asia.

 

USES

CULINARY

Durian fruit is used to flavour a wide variety of sweet edibles such as traditional Malay candy, ice kacang, dodol, lempuk, rose biscuits, and, with a touch of modern innovation, ice cream, milkshakes, mooncakes, Yule logs, and cappuccino. Es durian (durian ice cream) is a popular dessert in Indonesia, sold at street side stall in Indonesian cities, especially in Java. Pulut Durian or ketan durian is glutinous rice steamed with coconut milk and served with ripened durian. In Sabah, red durian is fried with onions and chilli and served as a side dish. Red-fleshed durian is traditionally added to sayur, an Indonesian soup made from freshwater fish. Ikan brengkes is fish cooked in a durian-based sauce, traditional in Sumatra. Traditionally Bollen pastry, specialty of Bandung is filled with banana and cheese. Today Bollen durian is also available, it is pastry filled with durian. Dried durian flesh can be made into kripik durian (durian chips).

 

Tempoyak refers to fermented durian, usually made from lower quality durian that is unsuitable for direct consumption. Tempoyak can be eaten either cooked or uncooked, is normally eaten with rice, and can also be used for making curry. Sambal Tempoyak is a Sumatran dish made from the fermented durian fruit, coconut milk, and a collection of spicy ingredients known as sambal.

 

In Thailand, durian is often eaten fresh with sweet sticky rice, and blocks of durian paste are sold in the markets, though much of the paste is adulterated with pumpkin. Unripe durians may be cooked as a vegetable, except in the Philippines, where all uses are sweet rather than savoury. Malaysians make both sugared and salted preserves from durian. When durian is minced with salt, onions and vinegar, it is called boder. The durian seeds, which are the size of chestnuts, can be eaten whether they are boiled, roasted or fried in coconut oil, with a texture that is similar to taro or yam, but stickier. In Java, the seeds are sliced thin and cooked with sugar as a confection. Uncooked durian seeds are toxic due to cyclopropene fatty acids and should not be ingested.

 

Young leaves and shoots of the durian are occasionally cooked as greens. Sometimes the ash of the burned rind is added to special cakes. The petals of durian flowers are eaten in the North Sumatra province of Indonesia, while in the Moluccas islands the husk of the durian fruit is used as fuel to smoke fish. The nectar and pollen of the durian flower that honeybees collect is an important honey source, but the characteristics of the honey are unknown.

 

NUTRITIONS AND FOLK MEDICINE

Durian fruit contains a high amount of sugar, vitamin C, potassium, and the serotonergic amino acid tryptophan, and is a good source of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. It is recommended as a good source of raw fats by several raw food advocates, while others classify it as a high-glycemic food, recommending to minimise its consumption.

 

In Malaysia, a decoction of the leaves and roots used to be prescribed as an antipyretic. The leaf juice is applied on the head of a fever patient. The most complete description of the medicinal use of the durian as remedies for fevers is a Malay prescription, collected by Burkill and Haniff in 1930. It instructs the reader to boil the roots of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis with the roots of Durio zibethinus, Nephelium longan, Nephelium mutabile and Artocarpus integrifolia, and drink the decoction or use it as a poultice.

 

In the 1920s, Durian Fruit Products, Inc., of New York City launched a product called "Dur-India" as a health food supplement, selling at US$9 for a dozen bottles, each containing 63 tablets. The tablets allegedly contained durian and a species of the genus Allium from India and vitamin E. The company promoted the supplement saying that it provides "more concentrated healthful energy in food form than any other product the world affords".

 

CUSTOMS AND BELIEFS

Southeast Asian traditional beliefs, as well as traditional Chinese medicine, consider the durian fruit to have warming properties liable to cause excessive sweating. The traditional method to counteract this is to pour water into the empty shell of the fruit after the pulp has been consumed and drink it. An alternative method is to eat the durian in accompaniment with mangosteen, which is considered to have cooling properties. Pregnant women or people with high blood pressure are traditionally advised not to consume durian.

 

Another common local belief is that the durian is harmful when eaten with coffee or alcoholic beverages. The latter belief can be traced back at least to the 18th century when Rumphius stated that one should not drink alcohol after eating durians as it will cause indigestion and bad breath. In 1929, J. D. Gimlette wrote in his Malay Poisons and Charm Cures that the durian fruit must not be eaten with brandy. In 1981, J. R. Croft wrote in his Bombacaceae: In Handbooks of the Flora of Papua New Guinea that "a feeling of morbidity" often follows the consumption of alcohol too soon after eating durian. Several medical investigations on the validity of this belief have been conducted with varying conclusions, though a study by the University of Tsukuba finds the fruit's high sulphur content inhibits the activity of aldehyde dehydrogenase, causing a 70% reduction of the ability to clear toxins from the body.

 

The Javanese believe durian to have aphrodisiac qualities, and impose a set of rules on what may or may not be consumed with it or shortly thereafter. A saying in Indonesian, durian jatuh sarung naik, meaning "the durian falls and the sarong comes up", refers to this belief. The warnings against the supposed lecherous quality of this fruit soon spread to the West – the Swedenborgian philosopher Herman Vetterling commented on so-called "erotic properties" of the durian in the early 20th century.

 

A durian falling on a person's head can cause serious injuries because it is heavy, armed with sharp thorns, and can fall from a significant height. Wearing a hardhat is recommended when collecting the fruit. Alfred Russel Wallace writes that death rarely ensues from it, because the copious effusion of blood prevents the inflammation which might otherwise take place. A common saying is that a durian has eyes and can see where it is falling because the fruit allegedly never falls during daylight hours when people may be hurt. A saying in Indonesian, ketiban durian runtuh, which translates to "getting a durian avalanche", is the equivalent of the English phrase "windfall gain". Nevertheless, signs warning people not to linger under durian trees are found in Indonesia. Strong nylon or woven rope nettings are often strung between durian trees in orchards, serving a threefold purpose: the nets aid in the collection of the mature fruits, deter ground-level scavengers, and most importantly, prevent the durians from falling onto people.

 

A naturally spineless variety of durian growing wild in Davao, Philippines, was discovered in the 1960s; fruits borne from these seeds also lacked spines. Since the bases of the scales develop into spines as the fruit matures, sometimes spineless durians are produced artificially by scraping scales off immature fruits. In Malaysia, a spinesless durian clone D172 is registered by Agriculture Department on 17 June 1989. It was called "Durian Botak" (Bald Durian). In Indonesia, Ir Sumeru Ashari, head of Durian Research Centre, Universitas Brawijaya reported spineless durian from Kasembon, Malang. Another cultivar is from Lombok, Nusa Tenggara Barat, Indonesia.

 

Animals such as Sumatran elephants are known to consume durians. Curiously, the carnivorous Sumatran tiger is also known to consume durian occasionally. The strong odour of the fallen fruits in the jungle probably attracts the tiger to inspect the fruit and lick it.

 

CULTURAL INFLUENCE

The durian is commonly known as the "King of the Fruits", a label that can be attributed to its formidable look and overpowering odour. In its native southeastern Asia, the durian is an everyday food and portrayed in the local media in accordance with the cultural perception it has in the region. The durian symbolised the subjective nature of ugliness and beauty in Hong Kong director Fruit Chan's 2000 film Durian Durian (榴槤飄飄, lau lin piu piu), and was a nickname for the reckless but lovable protagonist of the eponymous Singaporean TV comedy Durian King played by Adrian Pang. Likewise, the oddly shaped Esplanade building in Singapore is often called "The Durian" by locals, and "The Big Durian" is the nickname of Jakarta, Indonesia.

 

One of the names Thailand contributed to the list of storm names for Western North Pacific tropical cyclones was 'Durian', which was retired after the second storm of this name in 2006. Being a fruit much loved by a variety of wild beasts, the durian sometimes signifies the long-forgotten animalistic aspect of humans, as in the legend of Orang Mawas, the Malaysian version of Bigfoot, and Orang Pendek, its Sumatran version, both of which have been claimed to feast on durians.

 

Frozen whole durians are shipped from Thailand to Asian markets and Chinatowns in Western countries.

 

WIKIPEDIA

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Goji Berries are SUPER Berries as they are packed with antioxidants, vitamins, minerals and even fiber.

This smoothie recipe pairs Gojis with another super berry, Raspberries. Raspberries are one of my fave berries. Raspberries are an excellent source of vitamin C, manganese, and dietary fiber. They are a very good source of copper and a good source of vitamin K, pantothenic acid, biotin, vitamin E, magnesium, folate, omega-3 fatty acids, and potassium.

 

Ingredients:

-1 cup of fresh Raspberries

-2-3 tsp pf Natural Honey

- 1 Cup of Almond milk (or soy milk)

-Handful of Ice Cubes

-2 TBSP of soaked Goji Berries

 

Directions:

In a small bowl mix 1-2 TBSP of goji berries in2 TBSP of water or fruit juice and leave for 10-15 minutes to make berries softer. This can also be done overnight.

Then blend the goji berries and the other ingredients until smooth.

 

Read more about Goji Berries & Raspberries

 

Goji Berries

Goji berries are known for their healing strength. The nutrients included in these berries are antioxidants and amino acids, but the real strength lies within their more than 20 vitamins and minerals. These precious nutrients have been used for centuries in Asian cultures to strengthen eyesight, fight against viruses, balance hormones, and even to assist with the longevity of life. Not feeling the best? Sweeten things up with 1/2 cup of these berries in your smoothie!

 

Raspberries

What's New and Beneficial About Raspberries:

One of the most fascinating new areas of raspberry research involves the potential for raspberries to improve management of obesity. Although this research is in its early stages, scientists now know that metabolism in our fat cells can be increased by phytonutrients found in raspberries, especially rheosmin (also called raspberry ketone). By increasing enzyme activity, oxygen consumption, and heat production in certain types of fat cells, raspberry phytonutrients like rheosmin may be able to decrease risk of obesity as well as risk of fatty liver. In addition to these benefits, rheosmin can decrease activity of a fat-digesting enzyme released by our pancreas called pancreatic lipase. This decrease in enzyme activity may result in less digestion and absorption of fat.

Recent research on organic raspberries has now shown organic raspberries to be significantly higher in total antioxidant capacity than non-organic raspberries. Raspberries in the study were grown on farms in Maryland that had been previously certified as organic by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. A series of tests involving free radical scavenging all provided the same results: organic raspberries outperformed their non-organic counterparts in terms of their antioxidant activity. This greater antioxidant capacity was associated with the greater levels of total phenols and total anthocyanins found in organic versus non-organic raspberries. While there are many good reasons to purchase organic versus non-organic foods of all kinds, this study makes it clear that these reasons specifically hold true for raspberries in a profound way.

You'll get significantly more antioxidant support by purchasing raspberries that are fully ripe. Recent studies have measured the total phenolic content, total flavonoid content, and anthocyanin content of raspberries harvested at varying stages of ripeness (from 50% to 100% maturity) and greatest overall antioxidant benefits were associated with full ripeness of the berries. Although it's possible for raspberries to ripen after harvest, this fruit can be highly perishable and can mold quite easily at room temperature. So your most risk-free approach for getting optimal antioxidant benefits from raspberries is to purchase them at full maturity, keep them refrigerated at all times at temperatures between 35-39°F (2°-4°C), and consume them very quickly (within 1 to 2 days after purchase).

Anti-cancer benefits of raspberries have long been attributed to their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory phytonutrients. In animal studies involving breast, cervical, colon, esophageal, and prostate cancers, raspberry phytonutrients have been shown to play an important role in lowering oxidative stress, reducing inflammation, and thereby altering the development or reproduction of cancer cells. But new research in this area has shown that the anti-cancer benefits of raspberries may extend beyond their basic antioxidant and anti-inflammatory aspects. Phytonutrients in raspberries may also be able to change the signals that are sent to potential or existing cancer cells. In the case of existing cancer cells, phytonutrients like ellagitannins in raspberries may be able to decrease cancer cell numbers by sending signals that encourage the cancer cells to being a cycle of programmed cell death (apoptosis). In the case of potentially but not yet cancerous cells, phytonutrients in raspberries may be able to trigger signals that encourage the non-cancerous cells to remain non-cancerous.

 

. . . if you didn´t eat this fruit, don´t say you know anyting about fruits! This is the most delicious fruit in the world!

_________________________________________

 

The durian (/ˈdjʊriən/) is the fruit of several tree species belonging to the genus Durio. The name 'durian' is derived from the Malay-Indonesian languages word for duri or "spike", a reference to the numerous spike protuberances of the fruit, together with the noun-building suffix -an. There are 30 recognised Durio species, at least nine of which produce edible fruit. Durio zibethinus is the only species available in the international market: other species are sold in their local regions.

 

Regarded by many people in southeast Asia as the "king of fruits", the durian is distinctive for its large size, strong odour, and formidable thorn-covered husk. The fruit can grow as large as 30 centimetres long and 15 centimetres in diameter, and it typically weighs one to three kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale yellow to red, depending on the species.

 

The edible flesh emits a distinctive odour that is strong and penetrating even when the husk is intact. Some people regard the durian as having a pleasantly sweet fragrance; others find the aroma overpowering and revolting. The smell evokes reactions from deep appreciation to intense disgust, and has been described variously as rotten onions, turpentine, and raw sewage. The persistence of its odour has led to the fruit's banishment from certain hotels and public transportation in Southeast Asia.

 

The durian, native to Southeast Asia, has been known to the Western world for about 600 years. The nineteenth-century British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace described its flesh as "a rich custard highly flavoured with almonds". The flesh can be consumed at various stages of ripeness, and it is used to flavour a wide variety of savoury and sweet edibles in Southeast Asian cuisines. The seeds can also be eaten when cooked.

 

There are hundreds of durian cultivars; many consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

 

TAXONOMY

The genus Durio is placed by some taxonomists in the family Bombacaceae, or by others in a broadly defined Malvaceae that includes Bombacaceae, and by others in a smaller family of just seven genera Durionaceae.

 

DESCRIPTION

Durian trees are large, growing to 25–50 metres in height depending on the species. The leaves are evergreen, elliptic to oblong and 10–18 centimetres long. The flowers are produced in three to thirty clusters together on large branches and directly on the trunk with each flower having a calyx (sepals) and five (rarely four or six) petals. Durian trees have one or two flowering and fruiting periods per year, although the timing varies depending on the species, cultivars, and localities. A typical durian tree can bear fruit after four or five years. The durian fruit can hang from any branch and matures roughly three months after pollination. The fruit can grow up to 30 centimetres long and 15 centimetres (6 in) in diameter, and typically weighs one to three kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale-yellow to red, depending on the species. Among the thirty known species of Durio, nine of them have been identified as producing edible fruits: D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. grandiflorus, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. macrantha, D. oxleyanus, and D. testudinarum. There are many species for which the fruit has never been collected or properly examined, however, so other species with edible fruit may exist. The durian is somewhat similar in appearance to the jackfruit, an unrelated species.

 

The name durian comes from the Malay word duri (thorn) together with the suffix -an (for building a noun in Malay). D. zibethinus is the only species commercially cultivated on a large scale and available outside of its native region. Since this species is open-pollinated, it shows considerable diversity in fruit colour and odour, size of flesh and seed, and tree phenology. In the species name, zibethinus refers to the Indian civet, Viverra zibetha. There is disagreement regarding whether this name, bestowed by Linnaeus, refers to civets being so fond of the durian that the fruit was used as bait to entrap them, or to the durian smelling like the civet.

 

Durian flowers are large and feathery with copious nectar, and give off a heavy, sour, and buttery odour. These features are typical of flowers pollinated by certain species of bats that eat nectar and pollen. According to research conducted in Malaysia in the 1970s, durians were pollinated almost exclusively by cave fruit bats (Eonycteris spelaea); however, a 1996 study indicated two species, D. grandiflorus and D. oblongus, were pollinated by spiderhunters (Nectariniidae) and another species, D. kutejensis, was pollinated by giant honey bees and birds as well as bats.

 

CULTIVARS

Over the centuries, numerous durian cultivars, propagated by vegetative clones, have arisen in southeast Asia. They used to be grown with mixed results from seeds of trees bearing superior quality fruit, but now are propagated by layering, marcotting, or more commonly, by grafting, including bud, veneer, wedge, whip or U-grafting onto seedlings of randomly selected rootstocks. Different cultivars may be distinguished to some extent by variations in the fruit shape, such as the shape of the spines. Durian consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

 

Most cultivars have a common name and a code number starting with "D". For example, some popular clones are Kop (D99 Thai: กบ – "frog" [kòp]), Chanee (D123, Thai: ชะนี – gibbon [tɕʰániː]), Berserah or Green Durian or Tuan Mek Hijau (D145 Thai: ทุเรียนเขียว – Green Durian [tʰúriːən kʰǐow]), Kan Yao (D158, Thai: ก้านยาว – Long Stem [kâːn jaːw]), Mon Thong (D159, Thai: หมอนทอง – Golden Pillow [mɔ̌ːn tʰɔːŋ]), Kradum Thong (Thai: กระดุมทอง – Golden Button [kràdum tʰɔːŋ]), and with no common name, D24 and D169. Each cultivar has a distinct taste and odour. More than 200 cultivars of D. zibethinus exist in Thailand.

 

Mon thong is the most commercially sought after for its thick, full-bodied creamy and mild sweet tasting flesh with relatively moderate smell emitted and smaller seeds, while Chanee is the best in terms of its resistance to infection by Phytophthora palmivora. Kan Yao is somewhat less common, but prized for its longer window of time when it is both sweet and odorless at the same time. Among all the cultivars in Thailand, five are currently in large-scale commercial cultivation: Chanee, Mon Thong, Kan Yao, Ruang, and Kradum. There are more than 100 registered cultivars since 1920's in Malaysia and up to 193 cultivar by 1992, and many superior cultivars have been identified through competitions held at the annual Malaysian Agriculture, Horticulture, and Agrotourism Show. In Vietnam, the same process has been achieved through competitions held by the Southern Fruit Research Institute. A recently popular variety is, Cat Mountain King or Musang King.

 

By 2007, Songpol Somsri, a Thai government scientist, had crossbred more than ninety varieties of durian to create Chantaburi No. 1, a cultivar without the characteristic odour. Another hybrid, Chantaburi No. 3, develops the odour about three days after the fruit is picked, which enables an odourless transport yet satisfies consumers who prefer the pungent odour. On 22 May 2012, two other cultivars from Thailand that also lack the usual odour, Long Laplae and Lin Laplae, were presented to the public by Yothin Samutkhiri, governor of Uttaradit province from where these cultivars were developed locally, while he announced the dates for the yearly durian fair of Laplae District, and the name giver to both cultivars.

 

Popular cultivars in Malaysia and Singapore (Singapore imports most of its durians from Malaysia hence the varieties are similar although there may be slight variation in the names) include "D24" which is a popular variety known for its bitter sweet taste; "XO" which has a pale color, thick flesh with a tinge of alcoholic fermentation; "Chook Kiok" (Cantonese meaning: bamboo leg) which has a distinctive yellowish core in the inner stem and "Musang King" ( Musang is the Malay word for civet cat) which is usually the priciest of all cultivars. Musang King has bright yellow flesh and is almost like a more potent or enhanced version of the D24. This particular variety should be consumed last since it tends to make other durians taste bland in comparison.

 

CULTIVATION AND AVAIBILITY

The durian is native to Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia.[8] There is some debate as to whether the durian is native to the Philippines, particularly the Davao region in the island of Mindanao, or was introduced. The durian is grown in other areas with a similar climate; it is strictly tropical and stops growing when mean daily temperatures drop below 22 °C.

 

The centre of ecological diversity for durians is the island of Borneo, where the fruit of the edible species of Durio including D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. oxleyanus and D. testudinarum is sold in local markets. In Brunei, D. zibethinus is not grown because consumers prefer other species such as D. graveolens, D. kutejensis and D. oxleyanus. These species are commonly distributed in Brunei, and together with other species like D. testudinarum and D. dulcis, represent rich genetic diversity.

 

Although the durian is not native to Thailand, the country is currently one of the major exporters of durians, growing 781,000 tonnes of the world's total harvest of 1,400,000 tonnes in 1999, 111,000 tonnes of which it exported to Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore and Canada. Malaysia and Indonesia follow, both producing about 265,000 tonnes each. Of this, Malaysia exported 35,000 tonnes in 1999. Chantaburi in Thailand each year holds the World Durian Festival in early May. This single province is responsible for half of the durian production of Thailand. In the Philippines, the centre of durian production is the Davao Region. The Kadayawan Festival is an annual celebration featuring the durian in Davao City. Other places where durian farms are located include Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, India, the West Indies, Florida, Hawaii, Papua New Guinea, the Polynesian Islands, Madagascar, southern China (Hainan Island), northern Australia, and Singapore.

 

Durian was introduced into Australia in the early 1960s and clonal material was first introduced in 1975. Over thirty clones of D. zibethinus and six Durio species have been subsequently introduced into Australia. China is the major importer, purchasing 65,000 tonnes in 1999, followed by Singapore with 40,000 tonnes and Taiwan with 5,000 tonnes. In the same year, the United States imported 2,000 tonnes, mostly frozen, and the European Community imported 500 tonnes.

 

The durian is a seasonal fruit, unlike some other non-seasonal tropical fruits such as the papaya, which are available throughout the year. In Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, the season for durians is typically from June to August, which coincides with that of the mangosteen. Prices of durians are relatively high as compared with other fruits. For example, in Singapore, the strong demand for high quality cultivars such as the D24, Sultan, and Mao Shan Wang has resulted in typical retail prices of between S$8 to S$15 (US$5 to US$10) per kilogram of whole fruit. With an average weight of about 1.5 kilograms, a durian fruit would therefore cost about S$12 to S$22 (US$8 to US$15). The edible portion of the fruit, known as the aril and usually referred to as the "flesh" or "pulp", only accounts for about 15–30% of the mass of the entire fruit. Many consumers in Singapore are nevertheless quite willing to spend up to around S$75 (US$50) on a single purchase of about half a dozen of the favoured fruit to be shared by family members.

 

In-season durians can be found in mainstream Japanese supermarkets, while in the West they are sold mainly by Asian markets.

 

FLAVOUR AND ODOUR

The unusual flavour and odour of the fruit have prompted many people to express diverse and passionate views ranging from deep appreciation to intense disgust. Writing in 1856, the British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace provided a much-quoted description of the flavour of the durian:

 

The five cells are silky-white within, and are filled with a mass of firm, cream-coloured pulp, containing about three seeds each. This pulp is the edible part, and its consistence and flavour are indescribable. A rich custard highly flavoured with almonds gives the best general idea of it, but there are occasional wafts of flavour that call to mind cream-cheese, onion-sauce, sherry-wine, and other incongruous dishes. Then there is a rich glutinous smoothness in the pulp which nothing else possesses, but which adds to its delicacy. It is neither acidic nor sweet nor juicy; yet it wants neither of these qualities, for it is in itself perfect. It produces no nausea or other bad effect, and the more you eat of it the less you feel inclined to stop. In fact, to eat Durians is a new sensation worth a voyage to the East to experience. ... as producing a food of the most exquisite flavour it is unsurpassed.

 

Wallace described himself as being at first reluctant to try it because of the aroma, "but in Borneo I found a ripe fruit on the ground, and, eating it out of doors, I at once became a confirmed Durian eater." He cited one traveller from 1599: "it is of such an excellent taste that it surpasses in flavour all other fruits of the world, according to those who have tasted it." He cites another writer: "To those not used to it, it seems at first to smell like rotten onions, but immediately after they have tasted it they prefer it to all other food. The natives give it honourable titles, exalt it, and make verses on it." Despite having tried many foods that are arguably more eccentric, Andrew Zimmern, host of Bizarre Foods, was unable to finish a durian upon sampling it, due to his intolerance of its strong taste.

 

While Wallace cautions that "the smell of the ripe fruit is certainly at first disagreeable", later descriptions by westerners are more graphic. Novelist Anthony Burgess writes that eating durian is "like eating sweet raspberry blancmange in the lavatory". Chef Andrew Zimmern compares the taste to "completely rotten, mushy onions". Anthony Bourdain, a lover of durian, relates his encounter with the fruit thus: "Its taste can only be described as...indescribable, something you will either love or despise. ...Your breath will smell as if you'd been French-kissing your dead grandmother." Likewise, fellow chef Jamie Oliver has also expressed admiration for the fruit on his first sampling. Travel and food writer Richard Sterling says:

 

... its odor is best described as pig-shit, turpentine and onions, garnished with a gym sock. It can be smelled from yards away. Despite its great local popularity, the raw fruit is forbidden from some establishments such as hotels, subways and airports, including public transportation in Southeast Asia.

 

Other comparisons have been made with the civet, sewage, stale vomit, skunk spray and used surgical swabs. The wide range of descriptions for the odour of durian may have a great deal to do with the variability of durian odour itself. Durians from different species or clones can have significantly different aromas; for example, red durian (D. dulcis) has a deep caramel flavour with a turpentine odour while red-fleshed durian (D. graveolens) emits a fragrance of roasted almonds. Among the varieties of D. zibethinus, Thai varieties are sweeter in flavour and less odorous than Malay ones. The degree of ripeness has an effect on the flavour as well. Three scientific analyses of the composition of durian aroma – from 1972, 1980, and 1995 – each found a mix of volatile compounds including esters, ketones, and different sulphur compounds, with no agreement on which may be primarily responsible for the distinctive odour. People in South East Asia with frequent exposures to durian are able to easily distinguish its sweet-like ketones and esters scent from rotten or putrescine odours which are from volatile amines and fatty acids. Developmental or genetic differences in olfactory perception and mapping within the brain ( for e.g. anterior piriform cortex to the orbitofrontal cortex) could possibly explain why some individuals are unable to differentiate these smells and find this fruit noxious.

 

This strong odour can be detected half a mile away by animals, thus luring them. In addition, the fruit is extremely appetising to a variety of animals, including squirrels, mouse deer, pigs, orangutan, elephants, and even carnivorous tigers. While some of these animals eat the fruit and dispose of the seed under the parent plant, others swallow the seed with the fruit and then transport it some distance before excreting, with the seed being dispersed as a result. The thorny, armoured covering of the fruit discourages smaller animals; larger animals are more likely to transport the seeds far from the parent tree.

 

RIPENESS AND SELECTION

According to Larousse Gastronomique, the durian fruit is ready to eat when its husk begins to crack. However, the ideal stage of ripeness to be enjoyed varies from region to region in Southeast Asia and by species. Some species grow so tall that they can only be collected once they have fallen to the ground, whereas most cultivars of D. zibethinus are nearly always cut from the tree and allowed to ripen while waiting to be sold. Some people in southern Thailand prefer their durians relatively young when the clusters of fruit within the shell are still crisp in texture and mild in flavour. For some people in northern Thailand, the preference is for the fruit to be soft and aromatic. In Malaysia and Singapore, most consumers prefer the fruit to be as ripe and pungent in aroma as possible and may even risk allowing the fruit to continue ripening after its husk has already cracked open. In this state, the flesh becomes richly creamy, slightly alcoholic, the aroma pronounced and the flavour highly complex.

 

The various preferences regarding ripeness among consumers make it hard to issue general statements about choosing a "good" durian. A durian that falls off the tree continues to ripen for two to four days, but after five or six days most would consider it overripe and unpalatable. The usual advice for a durian consumer choosing a whole fruit in the market is to examine the quality of the stem or stalk which loses moisture as it ages: a big, solid stem is a sign of freshness. Reportedly, unscrupulous merchants wrap, paint, or remove the stalks altogether. Due to the popularity of Kan Yao, street vendors may sometimes sell a lesser variety with a long stem to unsuspecting customers. Another frequent piece of advice is to shake the fruit and listen for the sound of the seeds moving within, indicating the durian is very ripe and the pulp has dried out a bit.

 

HISTORY

The durian has been known and consumed in Southeast Asia since prehistoric times, but has only been known to the western world for about 600 years. The earliest native reference to durian is the several bas relief panels of 9th-century Borobudur depicting durian as one of fruit offering for Javanese king, and also as one of the fruits sold in marketplace.

 

The earliest known European reference to the durian is the record of Niccolò Da Conti, who travelled to southeastern Asia in the 15th century. Translated from the Latin in which Poggio Bracciolini recorded Da Conti's travels: "They (people of Sumatra) have a green fruit which they call durian, as big as a watermelon. Inside there are five things like elongated oranges, and resembling thick butter, with a combination of flavours." The Portuguese physician Garcia de Orta described durians in Colóquios dos simples e drogas da India published in 1563. In 1741, Herbarium Amboinense by the German botanist Georg Eberhard Rumphius was published, providing the most detailed and accurate account of durians for over a century. The genus Durio has a complex taxonomy that has seen the subtraction and addition of many species since it was created by Rumphius. During the early stages of its taxonomical study, there was some confusion between durian and the soursop (Annona muricata), for both of these species had thorny green fruit. It is also interesting to note the Malay name for the soursop is durian Belanda, meaning Dutch durian. In the 18th century, Johann Anton Weinmann considered the durian to belong to Castaneae as its fruit was similar to the horse chestnut.

 

D. zibethinus was introduced into Ceylon by the Portuguese in the 16th century and was reintroduced many times later. It has been planted in the Americas but confined to botanical gardens. The first seedlings were sent from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, to Auguste Saint-Arroman of Dominica in 1884.

 

In southeastern Asia, the durian has been cultivated for centuries at the village level, probably since the late 18th century, and commercially since the mid-20th century. In My Tropic Isle, Australian author and naturalist Edmund James Banfield tells how, in the early 20th century, a friend in Singapore sent him a durian seed, which he planted and cared for on his tropical island off the north coast of Queensland.

 

In 1949, the British botanist E. J. H. Corner published The Durian Theory, or the Origin of the Modern Tree. His theory was that endozoochory (the enticement of animals to transport seeds in their stomach) arose before any other method of seed dispersal, and that primitive ancestors of Durio species were the earliest practitioners of that dispersal method, in particular red durian (D. dulcis) exemplifying the primitive fruit of flowering plants.

 

Since the early 1990s, the domestic and international demand for durian in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region has increased significantly, partly due to the increasing affluence of Asia.

 

USES

CULINARY

Durian fruit is used to flavour a wide variety of sweet edibles such as traditional Malay candy, ice kacang, dodol, lempuk, rose biscuits, and, with a touch of modern innovation, ice cream, milkshakes, mooncakes, Yule logs, and cappuccino. Es durian (durian ice cream) is a popular dessert in Indonesia, sold at street side stall in Indonesian cities, especially in Java. Pulut Durian or ketan durian is glutinous rice steamed with coconut milk and served with ripened durian. In Sabah, red durian is fried with onions and chilli and served as a side dish. Red-fleshed durian is traditionally added to sayur, an Indonesian soup made from freshwater fish. Ikan brengkes is fish cooked in a durian-based sauce, traditional in Sumatra. Traditionally Bollen pastry, specialty of Bandung is filled with banana and cheese. Today Bollen durian is also available, it is pastry filled with durian. Dried durian flesh can be made into kripik durian (durian chips).

 

Tempoyak refers to fermented durian, usually made from lower quality durian that is unsuitable for direct consumption. Tempoyak can be eaten either cooked or uncooked, is normally eaten with rice, and can also be used for making curry. Sambal Tempoyak is a Sumatran dish made from the fermented durian fruit, coconut milk, and a collection of spicy ingredients known as sambal.

 

In Thailand, durian is often eaten fresh with sweet sticky rice, and blocks of durian paste are sold in the markets, though much of the paste is adulterated with pumpkin. Unripe durians may be cooked as a vegetable, except in the Philippines, where all uses are sweet rather than savoury. Malaysians make both sugared and salted preserves from durian. When durian is minced with salt, onions and vinegar, it is called boder. The durian seeds, which are the size of chestnuts, can be eaten whether they are boiled, roasted or fried in coconut oil, with a texture that is similar to taro or yam, but stickier. In Java, the seeds are sliced thin and cooked with sugar as a confection. Uncooked durian seeds are toxic due to cyclopropene fatty acids and should not be ingested.

 

Young leaves and shoots of the durian are occasionally cooked as greens. Sometimes the ash of the burned rind is added to special cakes. The petals of durian flowers are eaten in the North Sumatra province of Indonesia, while in the Moluccas islands the husk of the durian fruit is used as fuel to smoke fish. The nectar and pollen of the durian flower that honeybees collect is an important honey source, but the characteristics of the honey are unknown.

 

NUTRITIONS AND FOLK MEDICINE

Durian fruit contains a high amount of sugar, vitamin C, potassium, and the serotonergic amino acid tryptophan, and is a good source of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. It is recommended as a good source of raw fats by several raw food advocates, while others classify it as a high-glycemic food, recommending to minimise its consumption.

 

In Malaysia, a decoction of the leaves and roots used to be prescribed as an antipyretic. The leaf juice is applied on the head of a fever patient. The most complete description of the medicinal use of the durian as remedies for fevers is a Malay prescription, collected by Burkill and Haniff in 1930. It instructs the reader to boil the roots of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis with the roots of Durio zibethinus, Nephelium longan, Nephelium mutabile and Artocarpus integrifolia, and drink the decoction or use it as a poultice.

 

In the 1920s, Durian Fruit Products, Inc., of New York City launched a product called "Dur-India" as a health food supplement, selling at US$9 for a dozen bottles, each containing 63 tablets. The tablets allegedly contained durian and a species of the genus Allium from India and vitamin E. The company promoted the supplement saying that it provides "more concentrated healthful energy in food form than any other product the world affords".

 

CUSTOMS AND BELIEFS

Southeast Asian traditional beliefs, as well as traditional Chinese medicine, consider the durian fruit to have warming properties liable to cause excessive sweating. The traditional method to counteract this is to pour water into the empty shell of the fruit after the pulp has been consumed and drink it. An alternative method is to eat the durian in accompaniment with mangosteen, which is considered to have cooling properties. Pregnant women or people with high blood pressure are traditionally advised not to consume durian.

 

Another common local belief is that the durian is harmful when eaten with coffee or alcoholic beverages. The latter belief can be traced back at least to the 18th century when Rumphius stated that one should not drink alcohol after eating durians as it will cause indigestion and bad breath. In 1929, J. D. Gimlette wrote in his Malay Poisons and Charm Cures that the durian fruit must not be eaten with brandy. In 1981, J. R. Croft wrote in his Bombacaceae: In Handbooks of the Flora of Papua New Guinea that "a feeling of morbidity" often follows the consumption of alcohol too soon after eating durian. Several medical investigations on the validity of this belief have been conducted with varying conclusions, though a study by the University of Tsukuba finds the fruit's high sulphur content inhibits the activity of aldehyde dehydrogenase, causing a 70% reduction of the ability to clear toxins from the body.

 

The Javanese believe durian to have aphrodisiac qualities, and impose a set of rules on what may or may not be consumed with it or shortly thereafter. A saying in Indonesian, durian jatuh sarung naik, meaning "the durian falls and the sarong comes up", refers to this belief. The warnings against the supposed lecherous quality of this fruit soon spread to the West – the Swedenborgian philosopher Herman Vetterling commented on so-called "erotic properties" of the durian in the early 20th century.

 

A durian falling on a person's head can cause serious injuries because it is heavy, armed with sharp thorns, and can fall from a significant height. Wearing a hardhat is recommended when collecting the fruit. Alfred Russel Wallace writes that death rarely ensues from it, because the copious effusion of blood prevents the inflammation which might otherwise take place. A common saying is that a durian has eyes and can see where it is falling because the fruit allegedly never falls during daylight hours when people may be hurt. A saying in Indonesian, ketiban durian runtuh, which translates to "getting a durian avalanche", is the equivalent of the English phrase "windfall gain". Nevertheless, signs warning people not to linger under durian trees are found in Indonesia. Strong nylon or woven rope nettings are often strung between durian trees in orchards, serving a threefold purpose: the nets aid in the collection of the mature fruits, deter ground-level scavengers, and most importantly, prevent the durians from falling onto people.

 

A naturally spineless variety of durian growing wild in Davao, Philippines, was discovered in the 1960s; fruits borne from these seeds also lacked spines. Since the bases of the scales develop into spines as the fruit matures, sometimes spineless durians are produced artificially by scraping scales off immature fruits. In Malaysia, a spinesless durian clone D172 is registered by Agriculture Department on 17 June 1989. It was called "Durian Botak" (Bald Durian). In Indonesia, Ir Sumeru Ashari, head of Durian Research Centre, Universitas Brawijaya reported spineless durian from Kasembon, Malang. Another cultivar is from Lombok, Nusa Tenggara Barat, Indonesia.

 

Animals such as Sumatran elephants are known to consume durians. Curiously, the carnivorous Sumatran tiger is also known to consume durian occasionally. The strong odour of the fallen fruits in the jungle probably attracts the tiger to inspect the fruit and lick it.

 

CULTURAL INFLUENCE

The durian is commonly known as the "King of the Fruits", a label that can be attributed to its formidable look and overpowering odour. In its native southeastern Asia, the durian is an everyday food and portrayed in the local media in accordance with the cultural perception it has in the region. The durian symbolised the subjective nature of ugliness and beauty in Hong Kong director Fruit Chan's 2000 film Durian Durian (榴槤飄飄, lau lin piu piu), and was a nickname for the reckless but lovable protagonist of the eponymous Singaporean TV comedy Durian King played by Adrian Pang. Likewise, the oddly shaped Esplanade building in Singapore is often called "The Durian" by locals, and "The Big Durian" is the nickname of Jakarta, Indonesia.

 

One of the names Thailand contributed to the list of storm names for Western North Pacific tropical cyclones was 'Durian', which was retired after the second storm of this name in 2006. Being a fruit much loved by a variety of wild beasts, the durian sometimes signifies the long-forgotten animalistic aspect of humans, as in the legend of Orang Mawas, the Malaysian version of Bigfoot, and Orang Pendek, its Sumatran version, both of which have been claimed to feast on durians.

 

Frozen whole durians are shipped from Thailand to Asian markets and Chinatowns in Western countries.

 

WIKIPEDIA

. . . because of it´s taste it is the king of fruits!

Size is up to 30 cm long and 3 kg in weight.

______________________________

 

The durian (/ˈdjʊriən/) is the fruit of several tree species belonging to the genus Durio. The name 'durian' is derived from the Malay-Indonesian languages word for duri or "spike", a reference to the numerous spike protuberances of the fruit, together with the noun-building suffix -an. There are 30 recognised Durio species, at least nine of which produce edible fruit. Durio zibethinus is the only species available in the international market: other species are sold in their local regions.

 

Regarded by many people in southeast Asia as the "king of fruits", the durian is distinctive for its large size, strong odour, and formidable thorn-covered husk. The fruit can grow as large as 30 centimetres long and 15 centimetres in diameter, and it typically weighs one to three kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale yellow to red, depending on the species.

 

The edible flesh emits a distinctive odour that is strong and penetrating even when the husk is intact. Some people regard the durian as having a pleasantly sweet fragrance; others find the aroma overpowering and revolting. The smell evokes reactions from deep appreciation to intense disgust, and has been described variously as rotten onions, turpentine, and raw sewage. The persistence of its odour has led to the fruit's banishment from certain hotels and public transportation in Southeast Asia.

 

The durian, native to Southeast Asia, has been known to the Western world for about 600 years. The nineteenth-century British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace described its flesh as "a rich custard highly flavoured with almonds". The flesh can be consumed at various stages of ripeness, and it is used to flavour a wide variety of savoury and sweet edibles in Southeast Asian cuisines. The seeds can also be eaten when cooked.

 

There are hundreds of durian cultivars; many consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

 

TAXONOMY

The genus Durio is placed by some taxonomists in the family Bombacaceae, or by others in a broadly defined Malvaceae that includes Bombacaceae, and by others in a smaller family of just seven genera Durionaceae.

 

DESCRIPTION

Durian trees are large, growing to 25–50 metres in height depending on the species. The leaves are evergreen, elliptic to oblong and 10–18 centimetres long. The flowers are produced in three to thirty clusters together on large branches and directly on the trunk with each flower having a calyx (sepals) and five (rarely four or six) petals. Durian trees have one or two flowering and fruiting periods per year, although the timing varies depending on the species, cultivars, and localities. A typical durian tree can bear fruit after four or five years. The durian fruit can hang from any branch and matures roughly three months after pollination. The fruit can grow up to 30 centimetres long and 15 centimetres (6 in) in diameter, and typically weighs one to three kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale-yellow to red, depending on the species. Among the thirty known species of Durio, nine of them have been identified as producing edible fruits: D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. grandiflorus, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. macrantha, D. oxleyanus, and D. testudinarum. There are many species for which the fruit has never been collected or properly examined, however, so other species with edible fruit may exist. The durian is somewhat similar in appearance to the jackfruit, an unrelated species.

 

The name durian comes from the Malay word duri (thorn) together with the suffix -an (for building a noun in Malay). D. zibethinus is the only species commercially cultivated on a large scale and available outside of its native region. Since this species is open-pollinated, it shows considerable diversity in fruit colour and odour, size of flesh and seed, and tree phenology. In the species name, zibethinus refers to the Indian civet, Viverra zibetha. There is disagreement regarding whether this name, bestowed by Linnaeus, refers to civets being so fond of the durian that the fruit was used as bait to entrap them, or to the durian smelling like the civet.

 

Durian flowers are large and feathery with copious nectar, and give off a heavy, sour, and buttery odour. These features are typical of flowers pollinated by certain species of bats that eat nectar and pollen. According to research conducted in Malaysia in the 1970s, durians were pollinated almost exclusively by cave fruit bats (Eonycteris spelaea); however, a 1996 study indicated two species, D. grandiflorus and D. oblongus, were pollinated by spiderhunters (Nectariniidae) and another species, D. kutejensis, was pollinated by giant honey bees and birds as well as bats.

 

CULTIVARS

Over the centuries, numerous durian cultivars, propagated by vegetative clones, have arisen in southeast Asia. They used to be grown with mixed results from seeds of trees bearing superior quality fruit, but now are propagated by layering, marcotting, or more commonly, by grafting, including bud, veneer, wedge, whip or U-grafting onto seedlings of randomly selected rootstocks. Different cultivars may be distinguished to some extent by variations in the fruit shape, such as the shape of the spines. Durian consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

 

Most cultivars have a common name and a code number starting with "D". For example, some popular clones are Kop (D99 Thai: กบ – "frog" [kòp]), Chanee (D123, Thai: ชะนี – gibbon [tɕʰániː]), Berserah or Green Durian or Tuan Mek Hijau (D145 Thai: ทุเรียนเขียว – Green Durian [tʰúriːən kʰǐow]), Kan Yao (D158, Thai: ก้านยาว – Long Stem [kâːn jaːw]), Mon Thong (D159, Thai: หมอนทอง – Golden Pillow [mɔ̌ːn tʰɔːŋ]), Kradum Thong (Thai: กระดุมทอง – Golden Button [kràdum tʰɔːŋ]), and with no common name, D24 and D169. Each cultivar has a distinct taste and odour. More than 200 cultivars of D. zibethinus exist in Thailand.

 

Mon thong is the most commercially sought after for its thick, full-bodied creamy and mild sweet tasting flesh with relatively moderate smell emitted and smaller seeds, while Chanee is the best in terms of its resistance to infection by Phytophthora palmivora. Kan Yao is somewhat less common, but prized for its longer window of time when it is both sweet and odorless at the same time. Among all the cultivars in Thailand, five are currently in large-scale commercial cultivation: Chanee, Mon Thong, Kan Yao, Ruang, and Kradum. There are more than 100 registered cultivars since 1920's in Malaysia and up to 193 cultivar by 1992, and many superior cultivars have been identified through competitions held at the annual Malaysian Agriculture, Horticulture, and Agrotourism Show. In Vietnam, the same process has been achieved through competitions held by the Southern Fruit Research Institute. A recently popular variety is, Cat Mountain King or Musang King.

 

By 2007, Songpol Somsri, a Thai government scientist, had crossbred more than ninety varieties of durian to create Chantaburi No. 1, a cultivar without the characteristic odour. Another hybrid, Chantaburi No. 3, develops the odour about three days after the fruit is picked, which enables an odourless transport yet satisfies consumers who prefer the pungent odour. On 22 May 2012, two other cultivars from Thailand that also lack the usual odour, Long Laplae and Lin Laplae, were presented to the public by Yothin Samutkhiri, governor of Uttaradit province from where these cultivars were developed locally, while he announced the dates for the yearly durian fair of Laplae District, and the name giver to both cultivars.

 

Popular cultivars in Malaysia and Singapore (Singapore imports most of its durians from Malaysia hence the varieties are similar although there may be slight variation in the names) include "D24" which is a popular variety known for its bitter sweet taste; "XO" which has a pale color, thick flesh with a tinge of alcoholic fermentation; "Chook Kiok" (Cantonese meaning: bamboo leg) which has a distinctive yellowish core in the inner stem and "Musang King" ( Musang is the Malay word for civet cat) which is usually the priciest of all cultivars. Musang King has bright yellow flesh and is almost like a more potent or enhanced version of the D24. This particular variety should be consumed last since it tends to make other durians taste bland in comparison.

 

CULTIVATION AND AVAIBILITY

The durian is native to Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia. There is some debate as to whether the durian is native to the Philippines, particularly the Davao region in the island of Mindanao, or was introduced. The durian is grown in other areas with a similar climate; it is strictly tropical and stops growing when mean daily temperatures drop below 22 °C.

 

The centre of ecological diversity for durians is the island of Borneo, where the fruit of the edible species of Durio including D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. oxleyanus and D. testudinarum is sold in local markets. In Brunei, D. zibethinus is not grown because consumers prefer other species such as D. graveolens, D. kutejensis and D. oxleyanus. These species are commonly distributed in Brunei, and together with other species like D. testudinarum and D. dulcis, represent rich genetic diversity.

 

Although the durian is not native to Thailand, the country is currently one of the major exporters of durians, growing 781,000 tonnes of the world's total harvest of 1,400,000 tonnes in 1999, 111,000 tonnes of which it exported to Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore and Canada. Malaysia and Indonesia follow, both producing about 265,000 tonnes each. Of this, Malaysia exported 35,000 tonnes in 1999. Chantaburi in Thailand each year holds the World Durian Festival in early May. This single province is responsible for half of the durian production of Thailand. In the Philippines, the centre of durian production is the Davao Region. The Kadayawan Festival is an annual celebration featuring the durian in Davao City. Other places where durian farms are located include Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, India, the West Indies, Florida, Hawaii, Papua New Guinea, the Polynesian Islands, Madagascar, southern China (Hainan Island), northern Australia, and Singapore.

 

Durian was introduced into Australia in the early 1960s and clonal material was first introduced in 1975. Over thirty clones of D. zibethinus and six Durio species have been subsequently introduced into Australia. China is the major importer, purchasing 65,000 tonnes in 1999, followed by Singapore with 40,000 tonnes and Taiwan with 5,000 tonnes. In the same year, the United States imported 2,000 tonnes, mostly frozen, and the European Community imported 500 tonnes.

 

The durian is a seasonal fruit, unlike some other non-seasonal tropical fruits such as the papaya, which are available throughout the year. In Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, the season for durians is typically from June to August, which coincides with that of the mangosteen. Prices of durians are relatively high as compared with other fruits. For example, in Singapore, the strong demand for high quality cultivars such as the D24, Sultan, and Mao Shan Wang has resulted in typical retail prices of between S$8 to S$15 (US$5 to US$10) per kilogram of whole fruit. With an average weight of about 1.5 kilograms, a durian fruit would therefore cost about S$12 to S$22 (US$8 to US$15). The edible portion of the fruit, known as the aril and usually referred to as the "flesh" or "pulp", only accounts for about 15–30% of the mass of the entire fruit. Many consumers in Singapore are nevertheless quite willing to spend up to around S$75 (US$50) on a single purchase of about half a dozen of the favoured fruit to be shared by family members.

 

In-season durians can be found in mainstream Japanese supermarkets, while in the West they are sold mainly by Asian markets.

 

FLAVOUR AND ODOUR

The unusual flavour and odour of the fruit have prompted many people to express diverse and passionate views ranging from deep appreciation to intense disgust. Writing in 1856, the British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace provided a much-quoted description of the flavour of the durian:

 

The five cells are silky-white within, and are filled with a mass of firm, cream-coloured pulp, containing about three seeds each. This pulp is the edible part, and its consistence and flavour are indescribable. A rich custard highly flavoured with almonds gives the best general idea of it, but there are occasional wafts of flavour that call to mind cream-cheese, onion-sauce, sherry-wine, and other incongruous dishes. Then there is a rich glutinous smoothness in the pulp which nothing else possesses, but which adds to its delicacy. It is neither acidic nor sweet nor juicy; yet it wants neither of these qualities, for it is in itself perfect. It produces no nausea or other bad effect, and the more you eat of it the less you feel inclined to stop. In fact, to eat Durians is a new sensation worth a voyage to the East to experience. ... as producing a food of the most exquisite flavour it is unsurpassed.

 

Wallace described himself as being at first reluctant to try it because of the aroma, "but in Borneo I found a ripe fruit on the ground, and, eating it out of doors, I at once became a confirmed Durian eater." He cited one traveller from 1599: "it is of such an excellent taste that it surpasses in flavour all other fruits of the world, according to those who have tasted it." He cites another writer: "To those not used to it, it seems at first to smell like rotten onions, but immediately after they have tasted it they prefer it to all other food. The natives give it honourable titles, exalt it, and make verses on it." Despite having tried many foods that are arguably more eccentric, Andrew Zimmern, host of Bizarre Foods, was unable to finish a durian upon sampling it, due to his intolerance of its strong taste.

 

While Wallace cautions that "the smell of the ripe fruit is certainly at first disagreeable", later descriptions by westerners are more graphic. Novelist Anthony Burgess writes that eating durian is "like eating sweet raspberry blancmange in the lavatory". Chef Andrew Zimmern compares the taste to "completely rotten, mushy onions". Anthony Bourdain, a lover of durian, relates his encounter with the fruit thus: "Its taste can only be described as...indescribable, something you will either love or despise. ...Your breath will smell as if you'd been French-kissing your dead grandmother." Likewise, fellow chef Jamie Oliver has also expressed admiration for the fruit on his first sampling. Travel and food writer Richard Sterling says:

 

... its odor is best described as pig-shit, turpentine and onions, garnished with a gym sock. It can be smelled from yards away. Despite its great local popularity, the raw fruit is forbidden from some establishments such as hotels, subways and airports, including public transportation in Southeast Asia.

 

Other comparisons have been made with the civet, sewage, stale vomit, skunk spray and used surgical swabs. The wide range of descriptions for the odour of durian may have a great deal to do with the variability of durian odour itself. Durians from different species or clones can have significantly different aromas; for example, red durian (D. dulcis) has a deep caramel flavour with a turpentine odour while red-fleshed durian (D. graveolens) emits a fragrance of roasted almonds. Among the varieties of D. zibethinus, Thai varieties are sweeter in flavour and less odorous than Malay ones. The degree of ripeness has an effect on the flavour as well. Three scientific analyses of the composition of durian aroma – from 1972, 1980, and 1995 – each found a mix of volatile compounds including esters, ketones, and different sulphur compounds, with no agreement on which may be primarily responsible for the distinctive odour. People in South East Asia with frequent exposures to durian are able to easily distinguish its sweet-like ketones and esters scent from rotten or putrescine odours which are from volatile amines and fatty acids. Developmental or genetic differences in olfactory perception and mapping within the brain ( for e.g. anterior piriform cortex to the orbitofrontal cortex) could possibly explain why some individuals are unable to differentiate these smells and find this fruit noxious.

 

This strong odour can be detected half a mile away by animals, thus luring them. In addition, the fruit is extremely appetising to a variety of animals, including squirrels, mouse deer, pigs, orangutan, elephants, and even carnivorous tigers. While some of these animals eat the fruit and dispose of the seed under the parent plant, others swallow the seed with the fruit and then transport it some distance before excreting, with the seed being dispersed as a result. The thorny, armoured covering of the fruit discourages smaller animals; larger animals are more likely to transport the seeds far from the parent tree.

 

RIPENESS AND SELECTION

According to Larousse Gastronomique, the durian fruit is ready to eat when its husk begins to crack. However, the ideal stage of ripeness to be enjoyed varies from region to region in Southeast Asia and by species. Some species grow so tall that they can only be collected once they have fallen to the ground, whereas most cultivars of D. zibethinus are nearly always cut from the tree and allowed to ripen while waiting to be sold. Some people in southern Thailand prefer their durians relatively young when the clusters of fruit within the shell are still crisp in texture and mild in flavour. For some people in northern Thailand, the preference is for the fruit to be soft and aromatic. In Malaysia and Singapore, most consumers prefer the fruit to be as ripe and pungent in aroma as possible and may even risk allowing the fruit to continue ripening after its husk has already cracked open. In this state, the flesh becomes richly creamy, slightly alcoholic, the aroma pronounced and the flavour highly complex.

 

The various preferences regarding ripeness among consumers make it hard to issue general statements about choosing a "good" durian. A durian that falls off the tree continues to ripen for two to four days, but after five or six days most would consider it overripe and unpalatable. The usual advice for a durian consumer choosing a whole fruit in the market is to examine the quality of the stem or stalk which loses moisture as it ages: a big, solid stem is a sign of freshness. Reportedly, unscrupulous merchants wrap, paint, or remove the stalks altogether. Due to the popularity of Kan Yao, street vendors may sometimes sell a lesser variety with a long stem to unsuspecting customers. Another frequent piece of advice is to shake the fruit and listen for the sound of the seeds moving within, indicating the durian is very ripe and the pulp has dried out a bit.

 

HISTORY

The durian has been known and consumed in Southeast Asia since prehistoric times, but has only been known to the western world for about 600 years. The earliest native reference to durian is the several bas relief panels of 9th-century Borobudur depicting durian as one of fruit offering for Javanese king, and also as one of the fruits sold in marketplace.

 

The earliest known European reference to the durian is the record of Niccolò Da Conti, who travelled to southeastern Asia in the 15th century. Translated from the Latin in which Poggio Bracciolini recorded Da Conti's travels: "They (people of Sumatra) have a green fruit which they call durian, as big as a watermelon. Inside there are five things like elongated oranges, and resembling thick butter, with a combination of flavours." The Portuguese physician Garcia de Orta described durians in Colóquios dos simples e drogas da India published in 1563. In 1741, Herbarium Amboinense by the German botanist Georg Eberhard Rumphius was published, providing the most detailed and accurate account of durians for over a century. The genus Durio has a complex taxonomy that has seen the subtraction and addition of many species since it was created by Rumphius. During the early stages of its taxonomical study, there was some confusion between durian and the soursop (Annona muricata), for both of these species had thorny green fruit. It is also interesting to note the Malay name for the soursop is durian Belanda, meaning Dutch durian. In the 18th century, Johann Anton Weinmann considered the durian to belong to Castaneae as its fruit was similar to the horse chestnut.

 

D. zibethinus was introduced into Ceylon by the Portuguese in the 16th century and was reintroduced many times later. It has been planted in the Americas but confined to botanical gardens. The first seedlings were sent from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, to Auguste Saint-Arroman of Dominica in 1884.

 

In southeastern Asia, the durian has been cultivated for centuries at the village level, probably since the late 18th century, and commercially since the mid-20th century. In My Tropic Isle, Australian author and naturalist Edmund James Banfield tells how, in the early 20th century, a friend in Singapore sent him a durian seed, which he planted and cared for on his tropical island off the north coast of Queensland.

 

In 1949, the British botanist E. J. H. Corner published The Durian Theory, or the Origin of the Modern Tree. His theory was that endozoochory (the enticement of animals to transport seeds in their stomach) arose before any other method of seed dispersal, and that primitive ancestors of Durio species were the earliest practitioners of that dispersal method, in particular red durian (D. dulcis) exemplifying the primitive fruit of flowering plants.

 

Since the early 1990s, the domestic and international demand for durian in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region has increased significantly, partly due to the increasing affluence of Asia.

 

USES

CULINARY

Durian fruit is used to flavour a wide variety of sweet edibles such as traditional Malay candy, ice kacang, dodol, lempuk, rose biscuits, and, with a touch of modern innovation, ice cream, milkshakes, mooncakes, Yule logs, and cappuccino. Es durian (durian ice cream) is a popular dessert in Indonesia, sold at street side stall in Indonesian cities, especially in Java. Pulut Durian or ketan durian is glutinous rice steamed with coconut milk and served with ripened durian. In Sabah, red durian is fried with onions and chilli and served as a side dish. Red-fleshed durian is traditionally added to sayur, an Indonesian soup made from freshwater fish. Ikan brengkes is fish cooked in a durian-based sauce, traditional in Sumatra. Traditionally Bollen pastry, specialty of Bandung is filled with banana and cheese. Today Bollen durian is also available, it is pastry filled with durian. Dried durian flesh can be made into kripik durian (durian chips).

 

Tempoyak refers to fermented durian, usually made from lower quality durian that is unsuitable for direct consumption. Tempoyak can be eaten either cooked or uncooked, is normally eaten with rice, and can also be used for making curry. Sambal Tempoyak is a Sumatran dish made from the fermented durian fruit, coconut milk, and a collection of spicy ingredients known as sambal.

 

In Thailand, durian is often eaten fresh with sweet sticky rice, and blocks of durian paste are sold in the markets, though much of the paste is adulterated with pumpkin. Unripe durians may be cooked as a vegetable, except in the Philippines, where all uses are sweet rather than savoury. Malaysians make both sugared and salted preserves from durian. When durian is minced with salt, onions and vinegar, it is called boder. The durian seeds, which are the size of chestnuts, can be eaten whether they are boiled, roasted or fried in coconut oil, with a texture that is similar to taro or yam, but stickier. In Java, the seeds are sliced thin and cooked with sugar as a confection. Uncooked durian seeds are toxic due to cyclopropene fatty acids and should not be ingested.

 

Young leaves and shoots of the durian are occasionally cooked as greens. Sometimes the ash of the burned rind is added to special cakes. The petals of durian flowers are eaten in the North Sumatra province of Indonesia, while in the Moluccas islands the husk of the durian fruit is used as fuel to smoke fish. The nectar and pollen of the durian flower that honeybees collect is an important honey source, but the characteristics of the honey are unknown.

 

NUTRITIONS AND FOLK MEDICINE

Durian fruit contains a high amount of sugar, vitamin C, potassium, and the serotonergic amino acid tryptophan, and is a good source of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. It is recommended as a good source of raw fats by several raw food advocates, while others classify it as a high-glycemic food, recommending to minimise its consumption.

 

In Malaysia, a decoction of the leaves and roots used to be prescribed as an antipyretic. The leaf juice is applied on the head of a fever patient. The most complete description of the medicinal use of the durian as remedies for fevers is a Malay prescription, collected by Burkill and Haniff in 1930. It instructs the reader to boil the roots of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis with the roots of Durio zibethinus, Nephelium longan, Nephelium mutabile and Artocarpus integrifolia, and drink the decoction or use it as a poultice.

 

In the 1920s, Durian Fruit Products, Inc., of New York City launched a product called "Dur-India" as a health food supplement, selling at US$9 for a dozen bottles, each containing 63 tablets. The tablets allegedly contained durian and a species of the genus Allium from India and vitamin E. The company promoted the supplement saying that it provides "more concentrated healthful energy in food form than any other product the world affords".

 

CUSTOMS AND BELIEFS

Southeast Asian traditional beliefs, as well as traditional Chinese medicine, consider the durian fruit to have warming properties liable to cause excessive sweating. The traditional method to counteract this is to pour water into the empty shell of the fruit after the pulp has been consumed and drink it. An alternative method is to eat the durian in accompaniment with mangosteen, which is considered to have cooling properties. Pregnant women or people with high blood pressure are traditionally advised not to consume durian.

 

Another common local belief is that the durian is harmful when eaten with coffee or alcoholic beverages. The latter belief can be traced back at least to the 18th century when Rumphius stated that one should not drink alcohol after eating durians as it will cause indigestion and bad breath. In 1929, J. D. Gimlette wrote in his Malay Poisons and Charm Cures that the durian fruit must not be eaten with brandy. In 1981, J. R. Croft wrote in his Bombacaceae: In Handbooks of the Flora of Papua New Guinea that "a feeling of morbidity" often follows the consumption of alcohol too soon after eating durian. Several medical investigations on the validity of this belief have been conducted with varying conclusions, though a study by the University of Tsukuba finds the fruit's high sulphur content inhibits the activity of aldehyde dehydrogenase, causing a 70% reduction of the ability to clear toxins from the body.

 

The Javanese believe durian to have aphrodisiac qualities, and impose a set of rules on what may or may not be consumed with it or shortly thereafter. A saying in Indonesian, durian jatuh sarung naik, meaning "the durian falls and the sarong comes up", refers to this belief. The warnings against the supposed lecherous quality of this fruit soon spread to the West – the Swedenborgian philosopher Herman Vetterling commented on so-called "erotic properties" of the durian in the early 20th century.

 

A durian falling on a person's head can cause serious injuries because it is heavy, armed with sharp thorns, and can fall from a significant height. Wearing a hardhat is recommended when collecting the fruit. Alfred Russel Wallace writes that death rarely ensues from it, because the copious effusion of blood prevents the inflammation which might otherwise take place. A common saying is that a durian has eyes and can see where it is falling because the fruit allegedly never falls during daylight hours when people may be hurt. A saying in Indonesian, ketiban durian runtuh, which translates to "getting a durian avalanche", is the equivalent of the English phrase "windfall gain". Nevertheless, signs warning people not to linger under durian trees are found in Indonesia. Strong nylon or woven rope nettings are often strung between durian trees in orchards, serving a threefold purpose: the nets aid in the collection of the mature fruits, deter ground-level scavengers, and most importantly, prevent the durians from falling onto people.

 

A naturally spineless variety of durian growing wild in Davao, Philippines, was discovered in the 1960s; fruits borne from these seeds also lacked spines. Since the bases of the scales develop into spines as the fruit matures, sometimes spineless durians are produced artificially by scraping scales off immature fruits. In Malaysia, a spinesless durian clone D172 is registered by Agriculture Department on 17 June 1989. It was called "Durian Botak" (Bald Durian). In Indonesia, Ir Sumeru Ashari, head of Durian Research Centre, Universitas Brawijaya reported spineless durian from Kasembon, Malang. Another cultivar is from Lombok, Nusa Tenggara Barat, Indonesia.

 

Animals such as Sumatran elephants are known to consume durians. Curiously, the carnivorous Sumatran tiger is also known to consume durian occasionally. The strong odour of the fallen fruits in the jungle probably attracts the tiger to inspect the fruit and lick it.

 

CULTURAL INFLUENCE

The durian is commonly known as the "King of the Fruits", a label that can be attributed to its formidable look and overpowering odour. In its native southeastern Asia, the durian is an everyday food and portrayed in the local media in accordance with the cultural perception it has in the region. The durian symbolised the subjective nature of ugliness and beauty in Hong Kong director Fruit Chan's 2000 film Durian Durian (榴槤飄飄, lau lin piu piu), and was a nickname for the reckless but lovable protagonist of the eponymous Singaporean TV comedy Durian King played by Adrian Pang. Likewise, the oddly shaped Esplanade building in Singapore is often called "The Durian" by locals, and "The Big Durian" is the nickname of Jakarta, Indonesia.

 

One of the names Thailand contributed to the list of storm names for Western North Pacific tropical cyclones was 'Durian', which was retired after the second storm of this name in 2006. Being a fruit much loved by a variety of wild beasts, the durian sometimes signifies the long-forgotten animalistic aspect of humans, as in the legend of Orang Mawas, the Malaysian version of Bigfoot, and Orang Pendek, its Sumatran version, both of which have been claimed to feast on durians.

 

Frozen whole durians are shipped from Thailand to Asian markets and Chinatowns in Western countries.

 

WIKIPEDIA

The durian (/ˈdjʊriən/) is the fruit of several tree species belonging to the genus Durio. The name 'durian' is derived from the Malay-Indonesian languages word for duri or "spike", a reference to the numerous spike protuberances of the fruit, together with the noun-building suffix -an. There are 30 recognised Durio species, at least nine of which produce edible fruit. Durio zibethinus is the only species available in the international market: other species are sold in their local regions.

 

Regarded by many people in southeast Asia as the "king of fruits", the durian is distinctive for its large size, strong odour, and formidable thorn-covered husk. The fruit can grow as large as 30 centimetres long and 15 centimetres in diameter, and it typically weighs one to three kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale yellow to red, depending on the species.

 

The edible flesh emits a distinctive odour that is strong and penetrating even when the husk is intact. Some people regard the durian as having a pleasantly sweet fragrance; others find the aroma overpowering and revolting. The smell evokes reactions from deep appreciation to intense disgust, and has been described variously as rotten onions, turpentine, and raw sewage. The persistence of its odour has led to the fruit's banishment from certain hotels and public transportation in Southeast Asia.

 

The durian, native to Southeast Asia, has been known to the Western world for about 600 years. The nineteenth-century British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace described its flesh as "a rich custard highly flavoured with almonds". The flesh can be consumed at various stages of ripeness, and it is used to flavour a wide variety of savoury and sweet edibles in Southeast Asian cuisines. The seeds can also be eaten when cooked.

 

There are hundreds of durian cultivars; many consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

 

TAXONOMY

The genus Durio is placed by some taxonomists in the family Bombacaceae, or by others in a broadly defined Malvaceae that includes Bombacaceae, and by others in a smaller family of just seven genera Durionaceae.

 

DESCRIPTION

Durian trees are large, growing to 25–50 metres in height depending on the species. The leaves are evergreen, elliptic to oblong and 10–18 centimetres long. The flowers are produced in three to thirty clusters together on large branches and directly on the trunk with each flower having a calyx (sepals) and five (rarely four or six) petals. Durian trees have one or two flowering and fruiting periods per year, although the timing varies depending on the species, cultivars, and localities. A typical durian tree can bear fruit after four or five years. The durian fruit can hang from any branch and matures roughly three months after pollination. The fruit can grow up to 30 centimetres long and 15 centimetres (6 in) in diameter, and typically weighs one to three kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale-yellow to red, depending on the species. Among the thirty known species of Durio, nine of them have been identified as producing edible fruits: D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. grandiflorus, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. macrantha, D. oxleyanus, and D. testudinarum. There are many species for which the fruit has never been collected or properly examined, however, so other species with edible fruit may exist. The durian is somewhat similar in appearance to the jackfruit, an unrelated species.

 

The name durian comes from the Malay word duri (thorn) together with the suffix -an (for building a noun in Malay). D. zibethinus is the only species commercially cultivated on a large scale and available outside of its native region. Since this species is open-pollinated, it shows considerable diversity in fruit colour and odour, size of flesh and seed, and tree phenology. In the species name, zibethinus refers to the Indian civet, Viverra zibetha. There is disagreement regarding whether this name, bestowed by Linnaeus, refers to civets being so fond of the durian that the fruit was used as bait to entrap them, or to the durian smelling like the civet.

 

Durian flowers are large and feathery with copious nectar, and give off a heavy, sour, and buttery odour. These features are typical of flowers pollinated by certain species of bats that eat nectar and pollen. According to research conducted in Malaysia in the 1970s, durians were pollinated almost exclusively by cave fruit bats (Eonycteris spelaea); however, a 1996 study indicated two species, D. grandiflorus and D. oblongus, were pollinated by spiderhunters (Nectariniidae) and another species, D. kutejensis, was pollinated by giant honey bees and birds as well as bats.

 

CULTIVARS

Over the centuries, numerous durian cultivars, propagated by vegetative clones, have arisen in southeast Asia. They used to be grown with mixed results from seeds of trees bearing superior quality fruit, but now are propagated by layering, marcotting, or more commonly, by grafting, including bud, veneer, wedge, whip or U-grafting onto seedlings of randomly selected rootstocks. Different cultivars may be distinguished to some extent by variations in the fruit shape, such as the shape of the spines. Durian consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

 

Most cultivars have a common name and a code number starting with "D". For example, some popular clones are Kop (D99 Thai: กบ – "frog" [kòp]), Chanee (D123, Thai: ชะนี – gibbon [tɕʰániː]), Berserah or Green Durian or Tuan Mek Hijau (D145 Thai: ทุเรียนเขียว – Green Durian [tʰúriːən kʰǐow]), Kan Yao (D158, Thai: ก้านยาว – Long Stem [kâːn jaːw]), Mon Thong (D159, Thai: หมอนทอง – Golden Pillow [mɔ̌ːn tʰɔːŋ]), Kradum Thong (Thai: กระดุมทอง – Golden Button [kràdum tʰɔːŋ]), and with no common name, D24 and D169. Each cultivar has a distinct taste and odour. More than 200 cultivars of D. zibethinus exist in Thailand.

 

Mon thong is the most commercially sought after for its thick, full-bodied creamy and mild sweet tasting flesh with relatively moderate smell emitted and smaller seeds, while Chanee is the best in terms of its resistance to infection by Phytophthora palmivora. Kan Yao is somewhat less common, but prized for its longer window of time when it is both sweet and odorless at the same time. Among all the cultivars in Thailand, five are currently in large-scale commercial cultivation: Chanee, Mon Thong, Kan Yao, Ruang, and Kradum. There are more than 100 registered cultivars since 1920's in Malaysia and up to 193 cultivar by 1992, and many superior cultivars have been identified through competitions held at the annual Malaysian Agriculture, Horticulture, and Agrotourism Show. In Vietnam, the same process has been achieved through competitions held by the Southern Fruit Research Institute. A recently popular variety is, Cat Mountain King or Musang King.

 

By 2007, Songpol Somsri, a Thai government scientist, had crossbred more than ninety varieties of durian to create Chantaburi No. 1, a cultivar without the characteristic odour. Another hybrid, Chantaburi No. 3, develops the odour about three days after the fruit is picked, which enables an odourless transport yet satisfies consumers who prefer the pungent odour. On 22 May 2012, two other cultivars from Thailand that also lack the usual odour, Long Laplae and Lin Laplae, were presented to the public by Yothin Samutkhiri, governor of Uttaradit province from where these cultivars were developed locally, while he announced the dates for the yearly durian fair of Laplae District, and the name giver to both cultivars.

 

Popular cultivars in Malaysia and Singapore (Singapore imports most of its durians from Malaysia hence the varieties are similar although there may be slight variation in the names) include "D24" which is a popular variety known for its bitter sweet taste; "XO" which has a pale color, thick flesh with a tinge of alcoholic fermentation; "Chook Kiok" (Cantonese meaning: bamboo leg) which has a distinctive yellowish core in the inner stem and "Musang King" ( Musang is the Malay word for civet cat) which is usually the priciest of all cultivars. Musang King has bright yellow flesh and is almost like a more potent or enhanced version of the D24. This particular variety should be consumed last since it tends to make other durians taste bland in comparison.

 

CULTIVATION AND AVAIBILITY

The durian is native to Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia.[8] There is some debate as to whether the durian is native to the Philippines, particularly the Davao region in the island of Mindanao, or was introduced. The durian is grown in other areas with a similar climate; it is strictly tropical and stops growing when mean daily temperatures drop below 22 °C.

 

The centre of ecological diversity for durians is the island of Borneo, where the fruit of the edible species of Durio including D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. oxleyanus and D. testudinarum is sold in local markets. In Brunei, D. zibethinus is not grown because consumers prefer other species such as D. graveolens, D. kutejensis and D. oxleyanus. These species are commonly distributed in Brunei, and together with other species like D. testudinarum and D. dulcis, represent rich genetic diversity.

 

Although the durian is not native to Thailand, the country is currently one of the major exporters of durians, growing 781,000 tonnes of the world's total harvest of 1,400,000 tonnes in 1999, 111,000 tonnes of which it exported to Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore and Canada. Malaysia and Indonesia follow, both producing about 265,000 tonnes each. Of this, Malaysia exported 35,000 tonnes in 1999. Chantaburi in Thailand each year holds the World Durian Festival in early May. This single province is responsible for half of the durian production of Thailand. In the Philippines, the centre of durian production is the Davao Region. The Kadayawan Festival is an annual celebration featuring the durian in Davao City. Other places where durian farms are located include Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, India, the West Indies, Florida, Hawaii, Papua New Guinea, the Polynesian Islands, Madagascar, southern China (Hainan Island), northern Australia, and Singapore.

 

Durian was introduced into Australia in the early 1960s and clonal material was first introduced in 1975. Over thirty clones of D. zibethinus and six Durio species have been subsequently introduced into Australia. China is the major importer, purchasing 65,000 tonnes in 1999, followed by Singapore with 40,000 tonnes and Taiwan with 5,000 tonnes. In the same year, the United States imported 2,000 tonnes, mostly frozen, and the European Community imported 500 tonnes.

 

The durian is a seasonal fruit, unlike some other non-seasonal tropical fruits such as the papaya, which are available throughout the year. In Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, the season for durians is typically from June to August, which coincides with that of the mangosteen. Prices of durians are relatively high as compared with other fruits. For example, in Singapore, the strong demand for high quality cultivars such as the D24, Sultan, and Mao Shan Wang has resulted in typical retail prices of between S$8 to S$15 (US$5 to US$10) per kilogram of whole fruit. With an average weight of about 1.5 kilograms, a durian fruit would therefore cost about S$12 to S$22 (US$8 to US$15). The edible portion of the fruit, known as the aril and usually referred to as the "flesh" or "pulp", only accounts for about 15–30% of the mass of the entire fruit. Many consumers in Singapore are nevertheless quite willing to spend up to around S$75 (US$50) on a single purchase of about half a dozen of the favoured fruit to be shared by family members.

 

In-season durians can be found in mainstream Japanese supermarkets, while in the West they are sold mainly by Asian markets.

 

FLAVOUR AND ODOUR

The unusual flavour and odour of the fruit have prompted many people to express diverse and passionate views ranging from deep appreciation to intense disgust. Writing in 1856, the British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace provided a much-quoted description of the flavour of the durian:

 

The five cells are silky-white within, and are filled with a mass of firm, cream-coloured pulp, containing about three seeds each. This pulp is the edible part, and its consistence and flavour are indescribable. A rich custard highly flavoured with almonds gives the best general idea of it, but there are occasional wafts of flavour that call to mind cream-cheese, onion-sauce, sherry-wine, and other incongruous dishes. Then there is a rich glutinous smoothness in the pulp which nothing else possesses, but which adds to its delicacy. It is neither acidic nor sweet nor juicy; yet it wants neither of these qualities, for it is in itself perfect. It produces no nausea or other bad effect, and the more you eat of it the less you feel inclined to stop. In fact, to eat Durians is a new sensation worth a voyage to the East to experience. ... as producing a food of the most exquisite flavour it is unsurpassed.

 

Wallace described himself as being at first reluctant to try it because of the aroma, "but in Borneo I found a ripe fruit on the ground, and, eating it out of doors, I at once became a confirmed Durian eater." He cited one traveller from 1599: "it is of such an excellent taste that it surpasses in flavour all other fruits of the world, according to those who have tasted it." He cites another writer: "To those not used to it, it seems at first to smell like rotten onions, but immediately after they have tasted it they prefer it to all other food. The natives give it honourable titles, exalt it, and make verses on it." Despite having tried many foods that are arguably more eccentric, Andrew Zimmern, host of Bizarre Foods, was unable to finish a durian upon sampling it, due to his intolerance of its strong taste.

 

While Wallace cautions that "the smell of the ripe fruit is certainly at first disagreeable", later descriptions by westerners are more graphic. Novelist Anthony Burgess writes that eating durian is "like eating sweet raspberry blancmange in the lavatory". Chef Andrew Zimmern compares the taste to "completely rotten, mushy onions". Anthony Bourdain, a lover of durian, relates his encounter with the fruit thus: "Its taste can only be described as...indescribable, something you will either love or despise. ...Your breath will smell as if you'd been French-kissing your dead grandmother." Likewise, fellow chef Jamie Oliver has also expressed admiration for the fruit on his first sampling. Travel and food writer Richard Sterling says:

 

... its odor is best described as pig-shit, turpentine and onions, garnished with a gym sock. It can be smelled from yards away. Despite its great local popularity, the raw fruit is forbidden from some establishments such as hotels, subways and airports, including public transportation in Southeast Asia.

 

Other comparisons have been made with the civet, sewage, stale vomit, skunk spray and used surgical swabs. The wide range of descriptions for the odour of durian may have a great deal to do with the variability of durian odour itself. Durians from different species or clones can have significantly different aromas; for example, red durian (D. dulcis) has a deep caramel flavour with a turpentine odour while red-fleshed durian (D. graveolens) emits a fragrance of roasted almonds. Among the varieties of D. zibethinus, Thai varieties are sweeter in flavour and less odorous than Malay ones. The degree of ripeness has an effect on the flavour as well. Three scientific analyses of the composition of durian aroma – from 1972, 1980, and 1995 – each found a mix of volatile compounds including esters, ketones, and different sulphur compounds, with no agreement on which may be primarily responsible for the distinctive odour. People in South East Asia with frequent exposures to durian are able to easily distinguish its sweet-like ketones and esters scent from rotten or putrescine odours which are from volatile amines and fatty acids. Developmental or genetic differences in olfactory perception and mapping within the brain ( for e.g. anterior piriform cortex to the orbitofrontal cortex) could possibly explain why some individuals are unable to differentiate these smells and find this fruit noxious.

 

This strong odour can be detected half a mile away by animals, thus luring them. In addition, the fruit is extremely appetising to a variety of animals, including squirrels, mouse deer, pigs, orangutan, elephants, and even carnivorous tigers. While some of these animals eat the fruit and dispose of the seed under the parent plant, others swallow the seed with the fruit and then transport it some distance before excreting, with the seed being dispersed as a result. The thorny, armoured covering of the fruit discourages smaller animals; larger animals are more likely to transport the seeds far from the parent tree.

 

RIPENESS AND SELECTION

According to Larousse Gastronomique, the durian fruit is ready to eat when its husk begins to crack. However, the ideal stage of ripeness to be enjoyed varies from region to region in Southeast Asia and by species. Some species grow so tall that they can only be collected once they have fallen to the ground, whereas most cultivars of D. zibethinus are nearly always cut from the tree and allowed to ripen while waiting to be sold. Some people in southern Thailand prefer their durians relatively young when the clusters of fruit within the shell are still crisp in texture and mild in flavour. For some people in northern Thailand, the preference is for the fruit to be soft and aromatic. In Malaysia and Singapore, most consumers prefer the fruit to be as ripe and pungent in aroma as possible and may even risk allowing the fruit to continue ripening after its husk has already cracked open. In this state, the flesh becomes richly creamy, slightly alcoholic, the aroma pronounced and the flavour highly complex.

 

The various preferences regarding ripeness among consumers make it hard to issue general statements about choosing a "good" durian. A durian that falls off the tree continues to ripen for two to four days, but after five or six days most would consider it overripe and unpalatable. The usual advice for a durian consumer choosing a whole fruit in the market is to examine the quality of the stem or stalk which loses moisture as it ages: a big, solid stem is a sign of freshness. Reportedly, unscrupulous merchants wrap, paint, or remove the stalks altogether. Due to the popularity of Kan Yao, street vendors may sometimes sell a lesser variety with a long stem to unsuspecting customers. Another frequent piece of advice is to shake the fruit and listen for the sound of the seeds moving within, indicating the durian is very ripe and the pulp has dried out a bit.

 

HISTORY

The durian has been known and consumed in Southeast Asia since prehistoric times, but has only been known to the western world for about 600 years. The earliest native reference to durian is the several bas relief panels of 9th-century Borobudur depicting durian as one of fruit offering for Javanese king, and also as one of the fruits sold in marketplace.

 

The earliest known European reference to the durian is the record of Niccolò Da Conti, who travelled to southeastern Asia in the 15th century. Translated from the Latin in which Poggio Bracciolini recorded Da Conti's travels: "They (people of Sumatra) have a green fruit which they call durian, as big as a watermelon. Inside there are five things like elongated oranges, and resembling thick butter, with a combination of flavours." The Portuguese physician Garcia de Orta described durians in Colóquios dos simples e drogas da India published in 1563. In 1741, Herbarium Amboinense by the German botanist Georg Eberhard Rumphius was published, providing the most detailed and accurate account of durians for over a century. The genus Durio has a complex taxonomy that has seen the subtraction and addition of many species since it was created by Rumphius. During the early stages of its taxonomical study, there was some confusion between durian and the soursop (Annona muricata), for both of these species had thorny green fruit. It is also interesting to note the Malay name for the soursop is durian Belanda, meaning Dutch durian. In the 18th century, Johann Anton Weinmann considered the durian to belong to Castaneae as its fruit was similar to the horse chestnut.

 

D. zibethinus was introduced into Ceylon by the Portuguese in the 16th century and was reintroduced many times later. It has been planted in the Americas but confined to botanical gardens. The first seedlings were sent from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, to Auguste Saint-Arroman of Dominica in 1884.

 

In southeastern Asia, the durian has been cultivated for centuries at the village level, probably since the late 18th century, and commercially since the mid-20th century. In My Tropic Isle, Australian author and naturalist Edmund James Banfield tells how, in the early 20th century, a friend in Singapore sent him a durian seed, which he planted and cared for on his tropical island off the north coast of Queensland.

 

In 1949, the British botanist E. J. H. Corner published The Durian Theory, or the Origin of the Modern Tree. His theory was that endozoochory (the enticement of animals to transport seeds in their stomach) arose before any other method of seed dispersal, and that primitive ancestors of Durio species were the earliest practitioners of that dispersal method, in particular red durian (D. dulcis) exemplifying the primitive fruit of flowering plants.

 

Since the early 1990s, the domestic and international demand for durian in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region has increased significantly, partly due to the increasing affluence of Asia.

 

USES

CULINARY

Durian fruit is used to flavour a wide variety of sweet edibles such as traditional Malay candy, ice kacang, dodol, lempuk, rose biscuits, and, with a touch of modern innovation, ice cream, milkshakes, mooncakes, Yule logs, and cappuccino. Es durian (durian ice cream) is a popular dessert in Indonesia, sold at street side stall in Indonesian cities, especially in Java. Pulut Durian or ketan durian is glutinous rice steamed with coconut milk and served with ripened durian. In Sabah, red durian is fried with onions and chilli and served as a side dish. Red-fleshed durian is traditionally added to sayur, an Indonesian soup made from freshwater fish. Ikan brengkes is fish cooked in a durian-based sauce, traditional in Sumatra. Traditionally Bollen pastry, specialty of Bandung is filled with banana and cheese. Today Bollen durian is also available, it is pastry filled with durian. Dried durian flesh can be made into kripik durian (durian chips).

 

Tempoyak refers to fermented durian, usually made from lower quality durian that is unsuitable for direct consumption. Tempoyak can be eaten either cooked or uncooked, is normally eaten with rice, and can also be used for making curry. Sambal Tempoyak is a Sumatran dish made from the fermented durian fruit, coconut milk, and a collection of spicy ingredients known as sambal.

 

In Thailand, durian is often eaten fresh with sweet sticky rice, and blocks of durian paste are sold in the markets, though much of the paste is adulterated with pumpkin. Unripe durians may be cooked as a vegetable, except in the Philippines, where all uses are sweet rather than savoury. Malaysians make both sugared and salted preserves from durian. When durian is minced with salt, onions and vinegar, it is called boder. The durian seeds, which are the size of chestnuts, can be eaten whether they are boiled, roasted or fried in coconut oil, with a texture that is similar to taro or yam, but stickier. In Java, the seeds are sliced thin and cooked with sugar as a confection. Uncooked durian seeds are toxic due to cyclopropene fatty acids and should not be ingested.

 

Young leaves and shoots of the durian are occasionally cooked as greens. Sometimes the ash of the burned rind is added to special cakes. The petals of durian flowers are eaten in the North Sumatra province of Indonesia, while in the Moluccas islands the husk of the durian fruit is used as fuel to smoke fish. The nectar and pollen of the durian flower that honeybees collect is an important honey source, but the characteristics of the honey are unknown.

 

NUTRITIONS AND FOLK MEDICINE

Durian fruit contains a high amount of sugar, vitamin C, potassium, and the serotonergic amino acid tryptophan, and is a good source of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. It is recommended as a good source of raw fats by several raw food advocates, while others classify it as a high-glycemic food, recommending to minimise its consumption.

 

In Malaysia, a decoction of the leaves and roots used to be prescribed as an antipyretic. The leaf juice is applied on the head of a fever patient. The most complete description of the medicinal use of the durian as remedies for fevers is a Malay prescription, collected by Burkill and Haniff in 1930. It instructs the reader to boil the roots of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis with the roots of Durio zibethinus, Nephelium longan, Nephelium mutabile and Artocarpus integrifolia, and drink the decoction or use it as a poultice.

 

In the 1920s, Durian Fruit Products, Inc., of New York City launched a product called "Dur-India" as a health food supplement, selling at US$9 for a dozen bottles, each containing 63 tablets. The tablets allegedly contained durian and a species of the genus Allium from India and vitamin E. The company promoted the supplement saying that it provides "more concentrated healthful energy in food form than any other product the world affords".

 

CUSTOMS AND BELIEFS

Southeast Asian traditional beliefs, as well as traditional Chinese medicine, consider the durian fruit to have warming properties liable to cause excessive sweating. The traditional method to counteract this is to pour water into the empty shell of the fruit after the pulp has been consumed and drink it. An alternative method is to eat the durian in accompaniment with mangosteen, which is considered to have cooling properties. Pregnant women or people with high blood pressure are traditionally advised not to consume durian.

 

Another common local belief is that the durian is harmful when eaten with coffee or alcoholic beverages. The latter belief can be traced back at least to the 18th century when Rumphius stated that one should not drink alcohol after eating durians as it will cause indigestion and bad breath. In 1929, J. D. Gimlette wrote in his Malay Poisons and Charm Cures that the durian fruit must not be eaten with brandy. In 1981, J. R. Croft wrote in his Bombacaceae: In Handbooks of the Flora of Papua New Guinea that "a feeling of morbidity" often follows the consumption of alcohol too soon after eating durian. Several medical investigations on the validity of this belief have been conducted with varying conclusions, though a study by the University of Tsukuba finds the fruit's high sulphur content inhibits the activity of aldehyde dehydrogenase, causing a 70% reduction of the ability to clear toxins from the body.

 

The Javanese believe durian to have aphrodisiac qualities, and impose a set of rules on what may or may not be consumed with it or shortly thereafter. A saying in Indonesian, durian jatuh sarung naik, meaning "the durian falls and the sarong comes up", refers to this belief. The warnings against the supposed lecherous quality of this fruit soon spread to the West – the Swedenborgian philosopher Herman Vetterling commented on so-called "erotic properties" of the durian in the early 20th century.

 

A durian falling on a person's head can cause serious injuries because it is heavy, armed with sharp thorns, and can fall from a significant height. Wearing a hardhat is recommended when collecting the fruit. Alfred Russel Wallace writes that death rarely ensues from it, because the copious effusion of blood prevents the inflammation which might otherwise take place. A common saying is that a durian has eyes and can see where it is falling because the fruit allegedly never falls during daylight hours when people may be hurt. A saying in Indonesian, ketiban durian runtuh, which translates to "getting a durian avalanche", is the equivalent of the English phrase "windfall gain". Nevertheless, signs warning people not to linger under durian trees are found in Indonesia. Strong nylon or woven rope nettings are often strung between durian trees in orchards, serving a threefold purpose: the nets aid in the collection of the mature fruits, deter ground-level scavengers, and most importantly, prevent the durians from falling onto people.

 

A naturally spineless variety of durian growing wild in Davao, Philippines, was discovered in the 1960s; fruits borne from these seeds also lacked spines. Since the bases of the scales develop into spines as the fruit matures, sometimes spineless durians are produced artificially by scraping scales off immature fruits. In Malaysia, a spinesless durian clone D172 is registered by Agriculture Department on 17 June 1989. It was called "Durian Botak" (Bald Durian). In Indonesia, Ir Sumeru Ashari, head of Durian Research Centre, Universitas Brawijaya reported spineless durian from Kasembon, Malang. Another cultivar is from Lombok, Nusa Tenggara Barat, Indonesia.

 

Animals such as Sumatran elephants are known to consume durians. Curiously, the carnivorous Sumatran tiger is also known to consume durian occasionally. The strong odour of the fallen fruits in the jungle probably attracts the tiger to inspect the fruit and lick it.

 

CULTURAL INFLUENCE

The durian is commonly known as the "King of the Fruits", a label that can be attributed to its formidable look and overpowering odour. In its native southeastern Asia, the durian is an everyday food and portrayed in the local media in accordance with the cultural perception it has in the region. The durian symbolised the subjective nature of ugliness and beauty in Hong Kong director Fruit Chan's 2000 film Durian Durian (榴槤飄飄, lau lin piu piu), and was a nickname for the reckless but lovable protagonist of the eponymous Singaporean TV comedy Durian King played by Adrian Pang. Likewise, the oddly shaped Esplanade building in Singapore is often called "The Durian" by locals, and "The Big Durian" is the nickname of Jakarta, Indonesia.

 

One of the names Thailand contributed to the list of storm names for Western North Pacific tropical cyclones was 'Durian', which was retired after the second storm of this name in 2006. Being a fruit much loved by a variety of wild beasts, the durian sometimes signifies the long-forgotten animalistic aspect of humans, as in the legend of Orang Mawas, the Malaysian version of Bigfoot, and Orang Pendek, its Sumatran version, both of which have been claimed to feast on durians.

 

Frozen whole durians are shipped from Thailand to Asian markets and Chinatowns in Western countries.

 

WIKIPEDIA

The durian (/ˈdjʊriən/) is the fruit of several tree species belonging to the genus Durio. The name 'durian' is derived from the Malay-Indonesian languages word for duri or "spike", a reference to the numerous spike protuberances of the fruit, together with the noun-building suffix -an. There are 30 recognised Durio species, at least nine of which produce edible fruit. Durio zibethinus is the only species available in the international market: other species are sold in their local regions.

 

Regarded by many people in southeast Asia as the "king of fruits", the durian is distinctive for its large size, strong odour, and formidable thorn-covered husk. The fruit can grow as large as 30 centimetres long and 15 centimetres in diameter, and it typically weighs one to three kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale yellow to red, depending on the species.

 

The edible flesh emits a distinctive odour that is strong and penetrating even when the husk is intact. Some people regard the durian as having a pleasantly sweet fragrance; others find the aroma overpowering and revolting. The smell evokes reactions from deep appreciation to intense disgust, and has been described variously as rotten onions, turpentine, and raw sewage. The persistence of its odour has led to the fruit's banishment from certain hotels and public transportation in Southeast Asia.

 

The durian, native to Southeast Asia, has been known to the Western world for about 600 years. The nineteenth-century British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace described its flesh as "a rich custard highly flavoured with almonds". The flesh can be consumed at various stages of ripeness, and it is used to flavour a wide variety of savoury and sweet edibles in Southeast Asian cuisines. The seeds can also be eaten when cooked.

 

There are hundreds of durian cultivars; many consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

 

TAXONOMY

The genus Durio is placed by some taxonomists in the family Bombacaceae, or by others in a broadly defined Malvaceae that includes Bombacaceae, and by others in a smaller family of just seven genera Durionaceae.

 

DESCRIPTION

Durian trees are large, growing to 25–50 metres in height depending on the species. The leaves are evergreen, elliptic to oblong and 10–18 centimetres long. The flowers are produced in three to thirty clusters together on large branches and directly on the trunk with each flower having a calyx (sepals) and five (rarely four or six) petals. Durian trees have one or two flowering and fruiting periods per year, although the timing varies depending on the species, cultivars, and localities. A typical durian tree can bear fruit after four or five years. The durian fruit can hang from any branch and matures roughly three months after pollination. The fruit can grow up to 30 centimetres long and 15 centimetres (6 in) in diameter, and typically weighs one to three kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale-yellow to red, depending on the species. Among the thirty known species of Durio, nine of them have been identified as producing edible fruits: D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. grandiflorus, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. macrantha, D. oxleyanus, and D. testudinarum. There are many species for which the fruit has never been collected or properly examined, however, so other species with edible fruit may exist. The durian is somewhat similar in appearance to the jackfruit, an unrelated species.

 

The name durian comes from the Malay word duri (thorn) together with the suffix -an (for building a noun in Malay). D. zibethinus is the only species commercially cultivated on a large scale and available outside of its native region. Since this species is open-pollinated, it shows considerable diversity in fruit colour and odour, size of flesh and seed, and tree phenology. In the species name, zibethinus refers to the Indian civet, Viverra zibetha. There is disagreement regarding whether this name, bestowed by Linnaeus, refers to civets being so fond of the durian that the fruit was used as bait to entrap them, or to the durian smelling like the civet.

 

Durian flowers are large and feathery with copious nectar, and give off a heavy, sour, and buttery odour. These features are typical of flowers pollinated by certain species of bats that eat nectar and pollen. According to research conducted in Malaysia in the 1970s, durians were pollinated almost exclusively by cave fruit bats (Eonycteris spelaea); however, a 1996 study indicated two species, D. grandiflorus and D. oblongus, were pollinated by spiderhunters (Nectariniidae) and another species, D. kutejensis, was pollinated by giant honey bees and birds as well as bats.

 

CULTIVARS

Over the centuries, numerous durian cultivars, propagated by vegetative clones, have arisen in southeast Asia. They used to be grown with mixed results from seeds of trees bearing superior quality fruit, but now are propagated by layering, marcotting, or more commonly, by grafting, including bud, veneer, wedge, whip or U-grafting onto seedlings of randomly selected rootstocks. Different cultivars may be distinguished to some extent by variations in the fruit shape, such as the shape of the spines. Durian consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

 

Most cultivars have a common name and a code number starting with "D". For example, some popular clones are Kop (D99 Thai: กบ – "frog" [kòp]), Chanee (D123, Thai: ชะนี – gibbon [tɕʰániː]), Berserah or Green Durian or Tuan Mek Hijau (D145 Thai: ทุเรียนเขียว – Green Durian [tʰúriːən kʰǐow]), Kan Yao (D158, Thai: ก้านยาว – Long Stem [kâːn jaːw]), Mon Thong (D159, Thai: หมอนทอง – Golden Pillow [mɔ̌ːn tʰɔːŋ]), Kradum Thong (Thai: กระดุมทอง – Golden Button [kràdum tʰɔːŋ]), and with no common name, D24 and D169. Each cultivar has a distinct taste and odour. More than 200 cultivars of D. zibethinus exist in Thailand.

 

Mon thong is the most commercially sought after for its thick, full-bodied creamy and mild sweet tasting flesh with relatively moderate smell emitted and smaller seeds, while Chanee is the best in terms of its resistance to infection by Phytophthora palmivora. Kan Yao is somewhat less common, but prized for its longer window of time when it is both sweet and odorless at the same time. Among all the cultivars in Thailand, five are currently in large-scale commercial cultivation: Chanee, Mon Thong, Kan Yao, Ruang, and Kradum. There are more than 100 registered cultivars since 1920's in Malaysia and up to 193 cultivar by 1992, and many superior cultivars have been identified through competitions held at the annual Malaysian Agriculture, Horticulture, and Agrotourism Show. In Vietnam, the same process has been achieved through competitions held by the Southern Fruit Research Institute. A recently popular variety is, Cat Mountain King or Musang King.

 

By 2007, Songpol Somsri, a Thai government scientist, had crossbred more than ninety varieties of durian to create Chantaburi No. 1, a cultivar without the characteristic odour. Another hybrid, Chantaburi No. 3, develops the odour about three days after the fruit is picked, which enables an odourless transport yet satisfies consumers who prefer the pungent odour. On 22 May 2012, two other cultivars from Thailand that also lack the usual odour, Long Laplae and Lin Laplae, were presented to the public by Yothin Samutkhiri, governor of Uttaradit province from where these cultivars were developed locally, while he announced the dates for the yearly durian fair of Laplae District, and the name giver to both cultivars.

 

Popular cultivars in Malaysia and Singapore (Singapore imports most of its durians from Malaysia hence the varieties are similar although there may be slight variation in the names) include "D24" which is a popular variety known for its bitter sweet taste; "XO" which has a pale color, thick flesh with a tinge of alcoholic fermentation; "Chook Kiok" (Cantonese meaning: bamboo leg) which has a distinctive yellowish core in the inner stem and "Musang King" ( Musang is the Malay word for civet cat) which is usually the priciest of all cultivars. Musang King has bright yellow flesh and is almost like a more potent or enhanced version of the D24. This particular variety should be consumed last since it tends to make other durians taste bland in comparison.

 

CULTIVATION AND AVAIBILITY

The durian is native to Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia.[8] There is some debate as to whether the durian is native to the Philippines, particularly the Davao region in the island of Mindanao, or was introduced. The durian is grown in other areas with a similar climate; it is strictly tropical and stops growing when mean daily temperatures drop below 22 °C.

 

The centre of ecological diversity for durians is the island of Borneo, where the fruit of the edible species of Durio including D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. oxleyanus and D. testudinarum is sold in local markets. In Brunei, D. zibethinus is not grown because consumers prefer other species such as D. graveolens, D. kutejensis and D. oxleyanus. These species are commonly distributed in Brunei, and together with other species like D. testudinarum and D. dulcis, represent rich genetic diversity.

 

Although the durian is not native to Thailand, the country is currently one of the major exporters of durians, growing 781,000 tonnes of the world's total harvest of 1,400,000 tonnes in 1999, 111,000 tonnes of which it exported to Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore and Canada. Malaysia and Indonesia follow, both producing about 265,000 tonnes each. Of this, Malaysia exported 35,000 tonnes in 1999. Chantaburi in Thailand each year holds the World Durian Festival in early May. This single province is responsible for half of the durian production of Thailand. In the Philippines, the centre of durian production is the Davao Region. The Kadayawan Festival is an annual celebration featuring the durian in Davao City. Other places where durian farms are located include Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, India, the West Indies, Florida, Hawaii, Papua New Guinea, the Polynesian Islands, Madagascar, southern China (Hainan Island), northern Australia, and Singapore.

 

Durian was introduced into Australia in the early 1960s and clonal material was first introduced in 1975. Over thirty clones of D. zibethinus and six Durio species have been subsequently introduced into Australia. China is the major importer, purchasing 65,000 tonnes in 1999, followed by Singapore with 40,000 tonnes and Taiwan with 5,000 tonnes. In the same year, the United States imported 2,000 tonnes, mostly frozen, and the European Community imported 500 tonnes.

 

The durian is a seasonal fruit, unlike some other non-seasonal tropical fruits such as the papaya, which are available throughout the year. In Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, the season for durians is typically from June to August, which coincides with that of the mangosteen. Prices of durians are relatively high as compared with other fruits. For example, in Singapore, the strong demand for high quality cultivars such as the D24, Sultan, and Mao Shan Wang has resulted in typical retail prices of between S$8 to S$15 (US$5 to US$10) per kilogram of whole fruit. With an average weight of about 1.5 kilograms, a durian fruit would therefore cost about S$12 to S$22 (US$8 to US$15). The edible portion of the fruit, known as the aril and usually referred to as the "flesh" or "pulp", only accounts for about 15–30% of the mass of the entire fruit. Many consumers in Singapore are nevertheless quite willing to spend up to around S$75 (US$50) on a single purchase of about half a dozen of the favoured fruit to be shared by family members.

 

In-season durians can be found in mainstream Japanese supermarkets, while in the West they are sold mainly by Asian markets.

 

FLAVOUR AND ODOUR

The unusual flavour and odour of the fruit have prompted many people to express diverse and passionate views ranging from deep appreciation to intense disgust. Writing in 1856, the British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace provided a much-quoted description of the flavour of the durian:

 

The five cells are silky-white within, and are filled with a mass of firm, cream-coloured pulp, containing about three seeds each. This pulp is the edible part, and its consistence and flavour are indescribable. A rich custard highly flavoured with almonds gives the best general idea of it, but there are occasional wafts of flavour that call to mind cream-cheese, onion-sauce, sherry-wine, and other incongruous dishes. Then there is a rich glutinous smoothness in the pulp which nothing else possesses, but which adds to its delicacy. It is neither acidic nor sweet nor juicy; yet it wants neither of these qualities, for it is in itself perfect. It produces no nausea or other bad effect, and the more you eat of it the less you feel inclined to stop. In fact, to eat Durians is a new sensation worth a voyage to the East to experience. ... as producing a food of the most exquisite flavour it is unsurpassed.

 

Wallace described himself as being at first reluctant to try it because of the aroma, "but in Borneo I found a ripe fruit on the ground, and, eating it out of doors, I at once became a confirmed Durian eater." He cited one traveller from 1599: "it is of such an excellent taste that it surpasses in flavour all other fruits of the world, according to those who have tasted it." He cites another writer: "To those not used to it, it seems at first to smell like rotten onions, but immediately after they have tasted it they prefer it to all other food. The natives give it honourable titles, exalt it, and make verses on it." Despite having tried many foods that are arguably more eccentric, Andrew Zimmern, host of Bizarre Foods, was unable to finish a durian upon sampling it, due to his intolerance of its strong taste.

 

While Wallace cautions that "the smell of the ripe fruit is certainly at first disagreeable", later descriptions by westerners are more graphic. Novelist Anthony Burgess writes that eating durian is "like eating sweet raspberry blancmange in the lavatory". Chef Andrew Zimmern compares the taste to "completely rotten, mushy onions". Anthony Bourdain, a lover of durian, relates his encounter with the fruit thus: "Its taste can only be described as...indescribable, something you will either love or despise. ...Your breath will smell as if you'd been French-kissing your dead grandmother." Likewise, fellow chef Jamie Oliver has also expressed admiration for the fruit on his first sampling. Travel and food writer Richard Sterling says:

 

... its odor is best described as pig-shit, turpentine and onions, garnished with a gym sock. It can be smelled from yards away. Despite its great local popularity, the raw fruit is forbidden from some establishments such as hotels, subways and airports, including public transportation in Southeast Asia.

 

Other comparisons have been made with the civet, sewage, stale vomit, skunk spray and used surgical swabs. The wide range of descriptions for the odour of durian may have a great deal to do with the variability of durian odour itself. Durians from different species or clones can have significantly different aromas; for example, red durian (D. dulcis) has a deep caramel flavour with a turpentine odour while red-fleshed durian (D. graveolens) emits a fragrance of roasted almonds. Among the varieties of D. zibethinus, Thai varieties are sweeter in flavour and less odorous than Malay ones. The degree of ripeness has an effect on the flavour as well. Three scientific analyses of the composition of durian aroma – from 1972, 1980, and 1995 – each found a mix of volatile compounds including esters, ketones, and different sulphur compounds, with no agreement on which may be primarily responsible for the distinctive odour. People in South East Asia with frequent exposures to durian are able to easily distinguish its sweet-like ketones and esters scent from rotten or putrescine odours which are from volatile amines and fatty acids. Developmental or genetic differences in olfactory perception and mapping within the brain ( for e.g. anterior piriform cortex to the orbitofrontal cortex) could possibly explain why some individuals are unable to differentiate these smells and find this fruit noxious.

 

This strong odour can be detected half a mile away by animals, thus luring them. In addition, the fruit is extremely appetising to a variety of animals, including squirrels, mouse deer, pigs, orangutan, elephants, and even carnivorous tigers. While some of these animals eat the fruit and dispose of the seed under the parent plant, others swallow the seed with the fruit and then transport it some distance before excreting, with the seed being dispersed as a result. The thorny, armoured covering of the fruit discourages smaller animals; larger animals are more likely to transport the seeds far from the parent tree.

 

RIPENESS AND SELECTION

According to Larousse Gastronomique, the durian fruit is ready to eat when its husk begins to crack. However, the ideal stage of ripeness to be enjoyed varies from region to region in Southeast Asia and by species. Some species grow so tall that they can only be collected once they have fallen to the ground, whereas most cultivars of D. zibethinus are nearly always cut from the tree and allowed to ripen while waiting to be sold. Some people in southern Thailand prefer their durians relatively young when the clusters of fruit within the shell are still crisp in texture and mild in flavour. For some people in northern Thailand, the preference is for the fruit to be soft and aromatic. In Malaysia and Singapore, most consumers prefer the fruit to be as ripe and pungent in aroma as possible and may even risk allowing the fruit to continue ripening after its husk has already cracked open. In this state, the flesh becomes richly creamy, slightly alcoholic, the aroma pronounced and the flavour highly complex.

 

The various preferences regarding ripeness among consumers make it hard to issue general statements about choosing a "good" durian. A durian that falls off the tree continues to ripen for two to four days, but after five or six days most would consider it overripe and unpalatable. The usual advice for a durian consumer choosing a whole fruit in the market is to examine the quality of the stem or stalk which loses moisture as it ages: a big, solid stem is a sign of freshness. Reportedly, unscrupulous merchants wrap, paint, or remove the stalks altogether. Due to the popularity of Kan Yao, street vendors may sometimes sell a lesser variety with a long stem to unsuspecting customers. Another frequent piece of advice is to shake the fruit and listen for the sound of the seeds moving within, indicating the durian is very ripe and the pulp has dried out a bit.

 

HISTORY

The durian has been known and consumed in Southeast Asia since prehistoric times, but has only been known to the western world for about 600 years. The earliest native reference to durian is the several bas relief panels of 9th-century Borobudur depicting durian as one of fruit offering for Javanese king, and also as one of the fruits sold in marketplace.

 

The earliest known European reference to the durian is the record of Niccolò Da Conti, who travelled to southeastern Asia in the 15th century. Translated from the Latin in which Poggio Bracciolini recorded Da Conti's travels: "They (people of Sumatra) have a green fruit which they call durian, as big as a watermelon. Inside there are five things like elongated oranges, and resembling thick butter, with a combination of flavours." The Portuguese physician Garcia de Orta described durians in Colóquios dos simples e drogas da India published in 1563. In 1741, Herbarium Amboinense by the German botanist Georg Eberhard Rumphius was published, providing the most detailed and accurate account of durians for over a century. The genus Durio has a complex taxonomy that has seen the subtraction and addition of many species since it was created by Rumphius. During the early stages of its taxonomical study, there was some confusion between durian and the soursop (Annona muricata), for both of these species had thorny green fruit. It is also interesting to note the Malay name for the soursop is durian Belanda, meaning Dutch durian. In the 18th century, Johann Anton Weinmann considered the durian to belong to Castaneae as its fruit was similar to the horse chestnut.

 

D. zibethinus was introduced into Ceylon by the Portuguese in the 16th century and was reintroduced many times later. It has been planted in the Americas but confined to botanical gardens. The first seedlings were sent from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, to Auguste Saint-Arroman of Dominica in 1884.

 

In southeastern Asia, the durian has been cultivated for centuries at the village level, probably since the late 18th century, and commercially since the mid-20th century. In My Tropic Isle, Australian author and naturalist Edmund James Banfield tells how, in the early 20th century, a friend in Singapore sent him a durian seed, which he planted and cared for on his tropical island off the north coast of Queensland.

 

In 1949, the British botanist E. J. H. Corner published The Durian Theory, or the Origin of the Modern Tree. His theory was that endozoochory (the enticement of animals to transport seeds in their stomach) arose before any other method of seed dispersal, and that primitive ancestors of Durio species were the earliest practitioners of that dispersal method, in particular red durian (D. dulcis) exemplifying the primitive fruit of flowering plants.

 

Since the early 1990s, the domestic and international demand for durian in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region has increased significantly, partly due to the increasing affluence of Asia.

 

USES

CULINARY

Durian fruit is used to flavour a wide variety of sweet edibles such as traditional Malay candy, ice kacang, dodol, lempuk, rose biscuits, and, with a touch of modern innovation, ice cream, milkshakes, mooncakes, Yule logs, and cappuccino. Es durian (durian ice cream) is a popular dessert in Indonesia, sold at street side stall in Indonesian cities, especially in Java. Pulut Durian or ketan durian is glutinous rice steamed with coconut milk and served with ripened durian. In Sabah, red durian is fried with onions and chilli and served as a side dish. Red-fleshed durian is traditionally added to sayur, an Indonesian soup made from freshwater fish. Ikan brengkes is fish cooked in a durian-based sauce, traditional in Sumatra. Traditionally Bollen pastry, specialty of Bandung is filled with banana and cheese. Today Bollen durian is also available, it is pastry filled with durian. Dried durian flesh can be made into kripik durian (durian chips).

 

Tempoyak refers to fermented durian, usually made from lower quality durian that is unsuitable for direct consumption. Tempoyak can be eaten either cooked or uncooked, is normally eaten with rice, and can also be used for making curry. Sambal Tempoyak is a Sumatran dish made from the fermented durian fruit, coconut milk, and a collection of spicy ingredients known as sambal.

 

In Thailand, durian is often eaten fresh with sweet sticky rice, and blocks of durian paste are sold in the markets, though much of the paste is adulterated with pumpkin. Unripe durians may be cooked as a vegetable, except in the Philippines, where all uses are sweet rather than savoury. Malaysians make both sugared and salted preserves from durian. When durian is minced with salt, onions and vinegar, it is called boder. The durian seeds, which are the size of chestnuts, can be eaten whether they are boiled, roasted or fried in coconut oil, with a texture that is similar to taro or yam, but stickier. In Java, the seeds are sliced thin and cooked with sugar as a confection. Uncooked durian seeds are toxic due to cyclopropene fatty acids and should not be ingested.

 

Young leaves and shoots of the durian are occasionally cooked as greens. Sometimes the ash of the burned rind is added to special cakes. The petals of durian flowers are eaten in the North Sumatra province of Indonesia, while in the Moluccas islands the husk of the durian fruit is used as fuel to smoke fish. The nectar and pollen of the durian flower that honeybees collect is an important honey source, but the characteristics of the honey are unknown.

 

NUTRITIONS AND FOLK MEDICINE

Durian fruit contains a high amount of sugar, vitamin C, potassium, and the serotonergic amino acid tryptophan, and is a good source of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. It is recommended as a good source of raw fats by several raw food advocates, while others classify it as a high-glycemic food, recommending to minimise its consumption.

 

In Malaysia, a decoction of the leaves and roots used to be prescribed as an antipyretic. The leaf juice is applied on the head of a fever patient. The most complete description of the medicinal use of the durian as remedies for fevers is a Malay prescription, collected by Burkill and Haniff in 1930. It instructs the reader to boil the roots of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis with the roots of Durio zibethinus, Nephelium longan, Nephelium mutabile and Artocarpus integrifolia, and drink the decoction or use it as a poultice.

 

In the 1920s, Durian Fruit Products, Inc., of New York City launched a product called "Dur-India" as a health food supplement, selling at US$9 for a dozen bottles, each containing 63 tablets. The tablets allegedly contained durian and a species of the genus Allium from India and vitamin E. The company promoted the supplement saying that it provides "more concentrated healthful energy in food form than any other product the world affords".

 

CUSTOMS AND BELIEFS

Southeast Asian traditional beliefs, as well as traditional Chinese medicine, consider the durian fruit to have warming properties liable to cause excessive sweating. The traditional method to counteract this is to pour water into the empty shell of the fruit after the pulp has been consumed and drink it. An alternative method is to eat the durian in accompaniment with mangosteen, which is considered to have cooling properties. Pregnant women or people with high blood pressure are traditionally advised not to consume durian.

 

Another common local belief is that the durian is harmful when eaten with coffee or alcoholic beverages. The latter belief can be traced back at least to the 18th century when Rumphius stated that one should not drink alcohol after eating durians as it will cause indigestion and bad breath. In 1929, J. D. Gimlette wrote in his Malay Poisons and Charm Cures that the durian fruit must not be eaten with brandy. In 1981, J. R. Croft wrote in his Bombacaceae: In Handbooks of the Flora of Papua New Guinea that "a feeling of morbidity" often follows the consumption of alcohol too soon after eating durian. Several medical investigations on the validity of this belief have been conducted with varying conclusions, though a study by the University of Tsukuba finds the fruit's high sulphur content inhibits the activity of aldehyde dehydrogenase, causing a 70% reduction of the ability to clear toxins from the body.

 

The Javanese believe durian to have aphrodisiac qualities, and impose a set of rules on what may or may not be consumed with it or shortly thereafter. A saying in Indonesian, durian jatuh sarung naik, meaning "the durian falls and the sarong comes up", refers to this belief. The warnings against the supposed lecherous quality of this fruit soon spread to the West – the Swedenborgian philosopher Herman Vetterling commented on so-called "erotic properties" of the durian in the early 20th century.

 

A durian falling on a person's head can cause serious injuries because it is heavy, armed with sharp thorns, and can fall from a significant height. Wearing a hardhat is recommended when collecting the fruit. Alfred Russel Wallace writes that death rarely ensues from it, because the copious effusion of blood prevents the inflammation which might otherwise take place. A common saying is that a durian has eyes and can see where it is falling because the fruit allegedly never falls during daylight hours when people may be hurt. A saying in Indonesian, ketiban durian runtuh, which translates to "getting a durian avalanche", is the equivalent of the English phrase "windfall gain". Nevertheless, signs warning people not to linger under durian trees are found in Indonesia. Strong nylon or woven rope nettings are often strung between durian trees in orchards, serving a threefold purpose: the nets aid in the collection of the mature fruits, deter ground-level scavengers, and most importantly, prevent the durians from falling onto people.

 

A naturally spineless variety of durian growing wild in Davao, Philippines, was discovered in the 1960s; fruits borne from these seeds also lacked spines. Since the bases of the scales develop into spines as the fruit matures, sometimes spineless durians are produced artificially by scraping scales off immature fruits. In Malaysia, a spinesless durian clone D172 is registered by Agriculture Department on 17 June 1989. It was called "Durian Botak" (Bald Durian). In Indonesia, Ir Sumeru Ashari, head of Durian Research Centre, Universitas Brawijaya reported spineless durian from Kasembon, Malang. Another cultivar is from Lombok, Nusa Tenggara Barat, Indonesia.

 

Animals such as Sumatran elephants are known to consume durians. Curiously, the carnivorous Sumatran tiger is also known to consume durian occasionally. The strong odour of the fallen fruits in the jungle probably attracts the tiger to inspect the fruit and lick it.

 

CULTURAL INFLUENCE

The durian is commonly known as the "King of the Fruits", a label that can be attributed to its formidable look and overpowering odour. In its native southeastern Asia, the durian is an everyday food and portrayed in the local media in accordance with the cultural perception it has in the region. The durian symbolised the subjective nature of ugliness and beauty in Hong Kong director Fruit Chan's 2000 film Durian Durian (榴槤飄飄, lau lin piu piu), and was a nickname for the reckless but lovable protagonist of the eponymous Singaporean TV comedy Durian King played by Adrian Pang. Likewise, the oddly shaped Esplanade building in Singapore is often called "The Durian" by locals, and "The Big Durian" is the nickname of Jakarta, Indonesia.

 

One of the names Thailand contributed to the list of storm names for Western North Pacific tropical cyclones was 'Durian', which was retired after the second storm of this name in 2006. Being a fruit much loved by a variety of wild beasts, the durian sometimes signifies the long-forgotten animalistic aspect of humans, as in the legend of Orang Mawas, the Malaysian version of Bigfoot, and Orang Pendek, its Sumatran version, both of which have been claimed to feast on durians.

 

Frozen whole durians are shipped from Thailand to Asian markets and Chinatowns in Western countries.

 

WIKIPEDIA

. . . people in Asia name the Durian "King Of Fruits" - I can tell you: it is the "King Of Fruits"!

____________________________________

 

The durian (/ˈdjʊriən/) is the fruit of several tree species belonging to the genus Durio. The name 'durian' is derived from the Malay-Indonesian languages word for duri or "spike", a reference to the numerous spike protuberances of the fruit, together with the noun-building suffix -an. There are 30 recognised Durio species, at least nine of which produce edible fruit. Durio zibethinus is the only species available in the international market: other species are sold in their local regions.

 

Regarded by many people in southeast Asia as the "king of fruits", the durian is distinctive for its large size, strong odour, and formidable thorn-covered husk. The fruit can grow as large as 30 centimetres long and 15 centimetres in diameter, and it typically weighs one to three kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale yellow to red, depending on the species.

 

The edible flesh emits a distinctive odour that is strong and penetrating even when the husk is intact. Some people regard the durian as having a pleasantly sweet fragrance; others find the aroma overpowering and revolting. The smell evokes reactions from deep appreciation to intense disgust, and has been described variously as rotten onions, turpentine, and raw sewage. The persistence of its odour has led to the fruit's banishment from certain hotels and public transportation in Southeast Asia.

 

The durian, native to Southeast Asia, has been known to the Western world for about 600 years. The nineteenth-century British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace described its flesh as "a rich custard highly flavoured with almonds". The flesh can be consumed at various stages of ripeness, and it is used to flavour a wide variety of savoury and sweet edibles in Southeast Asian cuisines. The seeds can also be eaten when cooked.

 

There are hundreds of durian cultivars; many consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

 

TAXONOMY

The genus Durio is placed by some taxonomists in the family Bombacaceae, or by others in a broadly defined Malvaceae that includes Bombacaceae, and by others in a smaller family of just seven genera Durionaceae.

 

DESCRIPTION

Durian trees are large, growing to 25–50 metres in height depending on the species. The leaves are evergreen, elliptic to oblong and 10–18 centimetres long. The flowers are produced in three to thirty clusters together on large branches and directly on the trunk with each flower having a calyx (sepals) and five (rarely four or six) petals. Durian trees have one or two flowering and fruiting periods per year, although the timing varies depending on the species, cultivars, and localities. A typical durian tree can bear fruit after four or five years. The durian fruit can hang from any branch and matures roughly three months after pollination. The fruit can grow up to 30 centimetres long and 15 centimetres (6 in) in diameter, and typically weighs one to three kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale-yellow to red, depending on the species. Among the thirty known species of Durio, nine of them have been identified as producing edible fruits: D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. grandiflorus, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. macrantha, D. oxleyanus, and D. testudinarum. There are many species for which the fruit has never been collected or properly examined, however, so other species with edible fruit may exist. The durian is somewhat similar in appearance to the jackfruit, an unrelated species.

 

The name durian comes from the Malay word duri (thorn) together with the suffix -an (for building a noun in Malay). D. zibethinus is the only species commercially cultivated on a large scale and available outside of its native region. Since this species is open-pollinated, it shows considerable diversity in fruit colour and odour, size of flesh and seed, and tree phenology. In the species name, zibethinus refers to the Indian civet, Viverra zibetha. There is disagreement regarding whether this name, bestowed by Linnaeus, refers to civets being so fond of the durian that the fruit was used as bait to entrap them, or to the durian smelling like the civet.

 

Durian flowers are large and feathery with copious nectar, and give off a heavy, sour, and buttery odour. These features are typical of flowers pollinated by certain species of bats that eat nectar and pollen. According to research conducted in Malaysia in the 1970s, durians were pollinated almost exclusively by cave fruit bats (Eonycteris spelaea); however, a 1996 study indicated two species, D. grandiflorus and D. oblongus, were pollinated by spiderhunters (Nectariniidae) and another species, D. kutejensis, was pollinated by giant honey bees and birds as well as bats.

 

CULTIVARS

Over the centuries, numerous durian cultivars, propagated by vegetative clones, have arisen in southeast Asia. They used to be grown with mixed results from seeds of trees bearing superior quality fruit, but now are propagated by layering, marcotting, or more commonly, by grafting, including bud, veneer, wedge, whip or U-grafting onto seedlings of randomly selected rootstocks. Different cultivars may be distinguished to some extent by variations in the fruit shape, such as the shape of the spines. Durian consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

 

Most cultivars have a common name and a code number starting with "D". For example, some popular clones are Kop (D99 Thai: กบ – "frog" [kòp]), Chanee (D123, Thai: ชะนี – gibbon [tɕʰániː]), Berserah or Green Durian or Tuan Mek Hijau (D145 Thai: ทุเรียนเขียว – Green Durian [tʰúriːən kʰǐow]), Kan Yao (D158, Thai: ก้านยาว – Long Stem [kâːn jaːw]), Mon Thong (D159, Thai: หมอนทอง – Golden Pillow [mɔ̌ːn tʰɔːŋ]), Kradum Thong (Thai: กระดุมทอง – Golden Button [kràdum tʰɔːŋ]), and with no common name, D24 and D169. Each cultivar has a distinct taste and odour. More than 200 cultivars of D. zibethinus exist in Thailand.

 

Mon thong is the most commercially sought after for its thick, full-bodied creamy and mild sweet tasting flesh with relatively moderate smell emitted and smaller seeds, while Chanee is the best in terms of its resistance to infection by Phytophthora palmivora. Kan Yao is somewhat less common, but prized for its longer window of time when it is both sweet and odorless at the same time. Among all the cultivars in Thailand, five are currently in large-scale commercial cultivation: Chanee, Mon Thong, Kan Yao, Ruang, and Kradum. There are more than 100 registered cultivars since 1920's in Malaysia and up to 193 cultivar by 1992, and many superior cultivars have been identified through competitions held at the annual Malaysian Agriculture, Horticulture, and Agrotourism Show. In Vietnam, the same process has been achieved through competitions held by the Southern Fruit Research Institute. A recently popular variety is, Cat Mountain King or Musang King.

 

By 2007, Songpol Somsri, a Thai government scientist, had crossbred more than ninety varieties of durian to create Chantaburi No. 1, a cultivar without the characteristic odour. Another hybrid, Chantaburi No. 3, develops the odour about three days after the fruit is picked, which enables an odourless transport yet satisfies consumers who prefer the pungent odour. On 22 May 2012, two other cultivars from Thailand that also lack the usual odour, Long Laplae and Lin Laplae, were presented to the public by Yothin Samutkhiri, governor of Uttaradit province from where these cultivars were developed locally, while he announced the dates for the yearly durian fair of Laplae District, and the name giver to both cultivars.

 

Popular cultivars in Malaysia and Singapore (Singapore imports most of its durians from Malaysia hence the varieties are similar although there may be slight variation in the names) include "D24" which is a popular variety known for its bitter sweet taste; "XO" which has a pale color, thick flesh with a tinge of alcoholic fermentation; "Chook Kiok" (Cantonese meaning: bamboo leg) which has a distinctive yellowish core in the inner stem and "Musang King" ( Musang is the Malay word for civet cat) which is usually the priciest of all cultivars. Musang King has bright yellow flesh and is almost like a more potent or enhanced version of the D24. This particular variety should be consumed last since it tends to make other durians taste bland in comparison.

 

CULTIVATION AND AVAIBILITY

The durian is native to Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia.[8] There is some debate as to whether the durian is native to the Philippines, particularly the Davao region in the island of Mindanao, or was introduced. The durian is grown in other areas with a similar climate; it is strictly tropical and stops growing when mean daily temperatures drop below 22 °C.

 

The centre of ecological diversity for durians is the island of Borneo, where the fruit of the edible species of Durio including D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. oxleyanus and D. testudinarum is sold in local markets. In Brunei, D. zibethinus is not grown because consumers prefer other species such as D. graveolens, D. kutejensis and D. oxleyanus. These species are commonly distributed in Brunei, and together with other species like D. testudinarum and D. dulcis, represent rich genetic diversity.

 

Although the durian is not native to Thailand, the country is currently one of the major exporters of durians, growing 781,000 tonnes of the world's total harvest of 1,400,000 tonnes in 1999, 111,000 tonnes of which it exported to Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore and Canada. Malaysia and Indonesia follow, both producing about 265,000 tonnes each. Of this, Malaysia exported 35,000 tonnes in 1999. Chantaburi in Thailand each year holds the World Durian Festival in early May. This single province is responsible for half of the durian production of Thailand. In the Philippines, the centre of durian production is the Davao Region. The Kadayawan Festival is an annual celebration featuring the durian in Davao City. Other places where durian farms are located include Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, India, the West Indies, Florida, Hawaii, Papua New Guinea, the Polynesian Islands, Madagascar, southern China (Hainan Island), northern Australia, and Singapore.

 

Durian was introduced into Australia in the early 1960s and clonal material was first introduced in 1975. Over thirty clones of D. zibethinus and six Durio species have been subsequently introduced into Australia. China is the major importer, purchasing 65,000 tonnes in 1999, followed by Singapore with 40,000 tonnes and Taiwan with 5,000 tonnes. In the same year, the United States imported 2,000 tonnes, mostly frozen, and the European Community imported 500 tonnes.

 

The durian is a seasonal fruit, unlike some other non-seasonal tropical fruits such as the papaya, which are available throughout the year. In Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, the season for durians is typically from June to August, which coincides with that of the mangosteen. Prices of durians are relatively high as compared with other fruits. For example, in Singapore, the strong demand for high quality cultivars such as the D24, Sultan, and Mao Shan Wang has resulted in typical retail prices of between S$8 to S$15 (US$5 to US$10) per kilogram of whole fruit. With an average weight of about 1.5 kilograms, a durian fruit would therefore cost about S$12 to S$22 (US$8 to US$15). The edible portion of the fruit, known as the aril and usually referred to as the "flesh" or "pulp", only accounts for about 15–30% of the mass of the entire fruit. Many consumers in Singapore are nevertheless quite willing to spend up to around S$75 (US$50) on a single purchase of about half a dozen of the favoured fruit to be shared by family members.

 

In-season durians can be found in mainstream Japanese supermarkets, while in the West they are sold mainly by Asian markets.

 

FLAVOUR AND ODOUR

The unusual flavour and odour of the fruit have prompted many people to express diverse and passionate views ranging from deep appreciation to intense disgust. Writing in 1856, the British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace provided a much-quoted description of the flavour of the durian:

 

The five cells are silky-white within, and are filled with a mass of firm, cream-coloured pulp, containing about three seeds each. This pulp is the edible part, and its consistence and flavour are indescribable. A rich custard highly flavoured with almonds gives the best general idea of it, but there are occasional wafts of flavour that call to mind cream-cheese, onion-sauce, sherry-wine, and other incongruous dishes. Then there is a rich glutinous smoothness in the pulp which nothing else possesses, but which adds to its delicacy. It is neither acidic nor sweet nor juicy; yet it wants neither of these qualities, for it is in itself perfect. It produces no nausea or other bad effect, and the more you eat of it the less you feel inclined to stop. In fact, to eat Durians is a new sensation worth a voyage to the East to experience. ... as producing a food of the most exquisite flavour it is unsurpassed.

 

Wallace described himself as being at first reluctant to try it because of the aroma, "but in Borneo I found a ripe fruit on the ground, and, eating it out of doors, I at once became a confirmed Durian eater." He cited one traveller from 1599: "it is of such an excellent taste that it surpasses in flavour all other fruits of the world, according to those who have tasted it." He cites another writer: "To those not used to it, it seems at first to smell like rotten onions, but immediately after they have tasted it they prefer it to all other food. The natives give it honourable titles, exalt it, and make verses on it." Despite having tried many foods that are arguably more eccentric, Andrew Zimmern, host of Bizarre Foods, was unable to finish a durian upon sampling it, due to his intolerance of its strong taste.

 

While Wallace cautions that "the smell of the ripe fruit is certainly at first disagreeable", later descriptions by westerners are more graphic. Novelist Anthony Burgess writes that eating durian is "like eating sweet raspberry blancmange in the lavatory". Chef Andrew Zimmern compares the taste to "completely rotten, mushy onions". Anthony Bourdain, a lover of durian, relates his encounter with the fruit thus: "Its taste can only be described as...indescribable, something you will either love or despise. ...Your breath will smell as if you'd been French-kissing your dead grandmother." Likewise, fellow chef Jamie Oliver has also expressed admiration for the fruit on his first sampling. Travel and food writer Richard Sterling says:

 

... its odor is best described as pig-shit, turpentine and onions, garnished with a gym sock. It can be smelled from yards away. Despite its great local popularity, the raw fruit is forbidden from some establishments such as hotels, subways and airports, including public transportation in Southeast Asia.

 

Other comparisons have been made with the civet, sewage, stale vomit, skunk spray and used surgical swabs. The wide range of descriptions for the odour of durian may have a great deal to do with the variability of durian odour itself. Durians from different species or clones can have significantly different aromas; for example, red durian (D. dulcis) has a deep caramel flavour with a turpentine odour while red-fleshed durian (D. graveolens) emits a fragrance of roasted almonds. Among the varieties of D. zibethinus, Thai varieties are sweeter in flavour and less odorous than Malay ones. The degree of ripeness has an effect on the flavour as well. Three scientific analyses of the composition of durian aroma – from 1972, 1980, and 1995 – each found a mix of volatile compounds including esters, ketones, and different sulphur compounds, with no agreement on which may be primarily responsible for the distinctive odour. People in South East Asia with frequent exposures to durian are able to easily distinguish its sweet-like ketones and esters scent from rotten or putrescine odours which are from volatile amines and fatty acids. Developmental or genetic differences in olfactory perception and mapping within the brain ( for e.g. anterior piriform cortex to the orbitofrontal cortex) could possibly explain why some individuals are unable to differentiate these smells and find this fruit noxious.

 

This strong odour can be detected half a mile away by animals, thus luring them. In addition, the fruit is extremely appetising to a variety of animals, including squirrels, mouse deer, pigs, orangutan, elephants, and even carnivorous tigers. While some of these animals eat the fruit and dispose of the seed under the parent plant, others swallow the seed with the fruit and then transport it some distance before excreting, with the seed being dispersed as a result. The thorny, armoured covering of the fruit discourages smaller animals; larger animals are more likely to transport the seeds far from the parent tree.

 

RIPENESS AND SELECTION

According to Larousse Gastronomique, the durian fruit is ready to eat when its husk begins to crack. However, the ideal stage of ripeness to be enjoyed varies from region to region in Southeast Asia and by species. Some species grow so tall that they can only be collected once they have fallen to the ground, whereas most cultivars of D. zibethinus are nearly always cut from the tree and allowed to ripen while waiting to be sold. Some people in southern Thailand prefer their durians relatively young when the clusters of fruit within the shell are still crisp in texture and mild in flavour. For some people in northern Thailand, the preference is for the fruit to be soft and aromatic. In Malaysia and Singapore, most consumers prefer the fruit to be as ripe and pungent in aroma as possible and may even risk allowing the fruit to continue ripening after its husk has already cracked open. In this state, the flesh becomes richly creamy, slightly alcoholic, the aroma pronounced and the flavour highly complex.

 

The various preferences regarding ripeness among consumers make it hard to issue general statements about choosing a "good" durian. A durian that falls off the tree continues to ripen for two to four days, but after five or six days most would consider it overripe and unpalatable. The usual advice for a durian consumer choosing a whole fruit in the market is to examine the quality of the stem or stalk which loses moisture as it ages: a big, solid stem is a sign of freshness. Reportedly, unscrupulous merchants wrap, paint, or remove the stalks altogether. Due to the popularity of Kan Yao, street vendors may sometimes sell a lesser variety with a long stem to unsuspecting customers. Another frequent piece of advice is to shake the fruit and listen for the sound of the seeds moving within, indicating the durian is very ripe and the pulp has dried out a bit.

 

HISTORY

The durian has been known and consumed in Southeast Asia since prehistoric times, but has only been known to the western world for about 600 years. The earliest native reference to durian is the several bas relief panels of 9th-century Borobudur depicting durian as one of fruit offering for Javanese king, and also as one of the fruits sold in marketplace.

 

The earliest known European reference to the durian is the record of Niccolò Da Conti, who travelled to southeastern Asia in the 15th century. Translated from the Latin in which Poggio Bracciolini recorded Da Conti's travels: "They (people of Sumatra) have a green fruit which they call durian, as big as a watermelon. Inside there are five things like elongated oranges, and resembling thick butter, with a combination of flavours." The Portuguese physician Garcia de Orta described durians in Colóquios dos simples e drogas da India published in 1563. In 1741, Herbarium Amboinense by the German botanist Georg Eberhard Rumphius was published, providing the most detailed and accurate account of durians for over a century. The genus Durio has a complex taxonomy that has seen the subtraction and addition of many species since it was created by Rumphius. During the early stages of its taxonomical study, there was some confusion between durian and the soursop (Annona muricata), for both of these species had thorny green fruit. It is also interesting to note the Malay name for the soursop is durian Belanda, meaning Dutch durian. In the 18th century, Johann Anton Weinmann considered the durian to belong to Castaneae as its fruit was similar to the horse chestnut.

 

D. zibethinus was introduced into Ceylon by the Portuguese in the 16th century and was reintroduced many times later. It has been planted in the Americas but confined to botanical gardens. The first seedlings were sent from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, to Auguste Saint-Arroman of Dominica in 1884.

 

In southeastern Asia, the durian has been cultivated for centuries at the village level, probably since the late 18th century, and commercially since the mid-20th century. In My Tropic Isle, Australian author and naturalist Edmund James Banfield tells how, in the early 20th century, a friend in Singapore sent him a durian seed, which he planted and cared for on his tropical island off the north coast of Queensland.

 

In 1949, the British botanist E. J. H. Corner published The Durian Theory, or the Origin of the Modern Tree. His theory was that endozoochory (the enticement of animals to transport seeds in their stomach) arose before any other method of seed dispersal, and that primitive ancestors of Durio species were the earliest practitioners of that dispersal method, in particular red durian (D. dulcis) exemplifying the primitive fruit of flowering plants.

 

Since the early 1990s, the domestic and international demand for durian in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region has increased significantly, partly due to the increasing affluence of Asia.

 

USES

CULINARY

Durian fruit is used to flavour a wide variety of sweet edibles such as traditional Malay candy, ice kacang, dodol, lempuk, rose biscuits, and, with a touch of modern innovation, ice cream, milkshakes, mooncakes, Yule logs, and cappuccino. Es durian (durian ice cream) is a popular dessert in Indonesia, sold at street side stall in Indonesian cities, especially in Java. Pulut Durian or ketan durian is glutinous rice steamed with coconut milk and served with ripened durian. In Sabah, red durian is fried with onions and chilli and served as a side dish. Red-fleshed durian is traditionally added to sayur, an Indonesian soup made from freshwater fish. Ikan brengkes is fish cooked in a durian-based sauce, traditional in Sumatra. Traditionally Bollen pastry, specialty of Bandung is filled with banana and cheese. Today Bollen durian is also available, it is pastry filled with durian. Dried durian flesh can be made into kripik durian (durian chips).

 

Tempoyak refers to fermented durian, usually made from lower quality durian that is unsuitable for direct consumption. Tempoyak can be eaten either cooked or uncooked, is normally eaten with rice, and can also be used for making curry. Sambal Tempoyak is a Sumatran dish made from the fermented durian fruit, coconut milk, and a collection of spicy ingredients known as sambal.

 

In Thailand, durian is often eaten fresh with sweet sticky rice, and blocks of durian paste are sold in the markets, though much of the paste is adulterated with pumpkin. Unripe durians may be cooked as a vegetable, except in the Philippines, where all uses are sweet rather than savoury. Malaysians make both sugared and salted preserves from durian. When durian is minced with salt, onions and vinegar, it is called boder. The durian seeds, which are the size of chestnuts, can be eaten whether they are boiled, roasted or fried in coconut oil, with a texture that is similar to taro or yam, but stickier. In Java, the seeds are sliced thin and cooked with sugar as a confection. Uncooked durian seeds are toxic due to cyclopropene fatty acids and should not be ingested.

 

Young leaves and shoots of the durian are occasionally cooked as greens. Sometimes the ash of the burned rind is added to special cakes. The petals of durian flowers are eaten in the North Sumatra province of Indonesia, while in the Moluccas islands the husk of the durian fruit is used as fuel to smoke fish. The nectar and pollen of the durian flower that honeybees collect is an important honey source, but the characteristics of the honey are unknown.

 

NUTRITIONS AND FOLK MEDICINE

Durian fruit contains a high amount of sugar, vitamin C, potassium, and the serotonergic amino acid tryptophan, and is a good source of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. It is recommended as a good source of raw fats by several raw food advocates, while others classify it as a high-glycemic food, recommending to minimise its consumption.

 

In Malaysia, a decoction of the leaves and roots used to be prescribed as an antipyretic. The leaf juice is applied on the head of a fever patient. The most complete description of the medicinal use of the durian as remedies for fevers is a Malay prescription, collected by Burkill and Haniff in 1930. It instructs the reader to boil the roots of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis with the roots of Durio zibethinus, Nephelium longan, Nephelium mutabile and Artocarpus integrifolia, and drink the decoction or use it as a poultice.

 

In the 1920s, Durian Fruit Products, Inc., of New York City launched a product called "Dur-India" as a health food supplement, selling at US$9 for a dozen bottles, each containing 63 tablets. The tablets allegedly contained durian and a species of the genus Allium from India and vitamin E. The company promoted the supplement saying that it provides "more concentrated healthful energy in food form than any other product the world affords".

 

CUSTOMS AND BELIEFS

Southeast Asian traditional beliefs, as well as traditional Chinese medicine, consider the durian fruit to have warming properties liable to cause excessive sweating. The traditional method to counteract this is to pour water into the empty shell of the fruit after the pulp has been consumed and drink it. An alternative method is to eat the durian in accompaniment with mangosteen, which is considered to have cooling properties. Pregnant women or people with high blood pressure are traditionally advised not to consume durian.

 

Another common local belief is that the durian is harmful when eaten with coffee or alcoholic beverages. The latter belief can be traced back at least to the 18th century when Rumphius stated that one should not drink alcohol after eating durians as it will cause indigestion and bad breath. In 1929, J. D. Gimlette wrote in his Malay Poisons and Charm Cures that the durian fruit must not be eaten with brandy. In 1981, J. R. Croft wrote in his Bombacaceae: In Handbooks of the Flora of Papua New Guinea that "a feeling of morbidity" often follows the consumption of alcohol too soon after eating durian. Several medical investigations on the validity of this belief have been conducted with varying conclusions, though a study by the University of Tsukuba finds the fruit's high sulphur content inhibits the activity of aldehyde dehydrogenase, causing a 70% reduction of the ability to clear toxins from the body.

 

The Javanese believe durian to have aphrodisiac qualities, and impose a set of rules on what may or may not be consumed with it or shortly thereafter. A saying in Indonesian, durian jatuh sarung naik, meaning "the durian falls and the sarong comes up", refers to this belief. The warnings against the supposed lecherous quality of this fruit soon spread to the West – the Swedenborgian philosopher Herman Vetterling commented on so-called "erotic properties" of the durian in the early 20th century.

 

A durian falling on a person's head can cause serious injuries because it is heavy, armed with sharp thorns, and can fall from a significant height. Wearing a hardhat is recommended when collecting the fruit. Alfred Russel Wallace writes that death rarely ensues from it, because the copious effusion of blood prevents the inflammation which might otherwise take place. A common saying is that a durian has eyes and can see where it is falling because the fruit allegedly never falls during daylight hours when people may be hurt. A saying in Indonesian, ketiban durian runtuh, which translates to "getting a durian avalanche", is the equivalent of the English phrase "windfall gain". Nevertheless, signs warning people not to linger under durian trees are found in Indonesia. Strong nylon or woven rope nettings are often strung between durian trees in orchards, serving a threefold purpose: the nets aid in the collection of the mature fruits, deter ground-level scavengers, and most importantly, prevent the durians from falling onto people.

 

A naturally spineless variety of durian growing wild in Davao, Philippines, was discovered in the 1960s; fruits borne from these seeds also lacked spines. Since the bases of the scales develop into spines as the fruit matures, sometimes spineless durians are produced artificially by scraping scales off immature fruits. In Malaysia, a spinesless durian clone D172 is registered by Agriculture Department on 17 June 1989. It was called "Durian Botak" (Bald Durian). In Indonesia, Ir Sumeru Ashari, head of Durian Research Centre, Universitas Brawijaya reported spineless durian from Kasembon, Malang. Another cultivar is from Lombok, Nusa Tenggara Barat, Indonesia.

 

Animals such as Sumatran elephants are known to consume durians. Curiously, the carnivorous Sumatran tiger is also known to consume durian occasionally. The strong odour of the fallen fruits in the jungle probably attracts the tiger to inspect the fruit and lick it.

 

CULTURAL INFLUENCE

The durian is commonly known as the "King of the Fruits", a label that can be attributed to its formidable look and overpowering odour. In its native southeastern Asia, the durian is an everyday food and portrayed in the local media in accordance with the cultural perception it has in the region. The durian symbolised the subjective nature of ugliness and beauty in Hong Kong director Fruit Chan's 2000 film Durian Durian (榴槤飄飄, lau lin piu piu), and was a nickname for the reckless but lovable protagonist of the eponymous Singaporean TV comedy Durian King played by Adrian Pang. Likewise, the oddly shaped Esplanade building in Singapore is often called "The Durian" by locals, and "The Big Durian" is the nickname of Jakarta, Indonesia.

 

One of the names Thailand contributed to the list of storm names for Western North Pacific tropical cyclones was 'Durian', which was retired after the second storm of this name in 2006. Being a fruit much loved by a variety of wild beasts, the durian sometimes signifies the long-forgotten animalistic aspect of humans, as in the legend of Orang Mawas, the Malaysian version of Bigfoot, and Orang Pendek, its Sumatran version, both of which have been claimed to feast on durians.

 

Frozen whole durians are shipped from Thailand to Asian markets and Chinatowns in Western countries.

 

WIKIPEDIA

My entry for Pam's "Faces in inanimate objects" theme. I think there's a smiley face in there, and the ketone strip is a bit like a tongue.

  

We bought this monitor to measure the amount of ketones in our blood to make sure we're in ketosis. Ketosis is a metabolic state in which the liver produces small organic molecules called ketone bodies at “sufficient” levels. This is upwards of 0.5mmol so I'm only just there this morning. When your body is creating enough ketone bodies it's not using glycogen as it's primary fuel source, instead it's using ketone bodies. This has some real advantages over glycogen because they are made from fat which we all have lots of (even really skinny people) so we never run out, and it makes it very easy to reduce or maintain your body fat. There are some endurance ahletes doing amazing things in ketosis like record breaking 100 mile runs with barely any food. It sounded too good to be true so I had to give it a go.

  

To get your body to run on ketone bodies you need to completely eliminate carbohydrate from your diet, absolutely no sugar, potatoes, apples, all that stuff. You also have to make sure you don't eat too much protein either which is tricky when you're cutting out all the carbs. It means you have to eat a lot of fat which we're all mentally conditioned to avoid. I'm leaving the fat on my bacon now and I even ate a whole spoonful of coconut oil by itself the other day. It's very odd.

  

Over the last 3 months I've consumed no carbohydrate and loads of fat and lost 11.4kg, or 1st 11lb, and gone from 24% to 16% body fat. I've been taking measurements and I'm pretty certain I've not lost any muscle. Everytime I look in the mirror I laugh at how much my body has changed, it's unreal. Quite a few people have told me to "be careful" but I'm not sure they understand what's happening and how my body is not in a state of stress, I'm not starving myself like you would with a calorie restricted low fat diet. I feel great, loads better than when I was eating carbs. I'm riding my bike 10 hours a week, doing pilates and free weights and I have constant energy from when I wake to when I go to bed and I'm not hungry all day like when I ate carbs.

  

Peter Attia explains it all in detail but it's a bit heavy going:

  

eatingacademy.com/nutrition/ketosis-advantaged-or-misunde...

 

. . . people in Asia name the Durian "King Of Fruits" - I can tell you: it is the "King Of Fruits"!

____________________________________

 

The durian (/ˈdjʊriən/) is the fruit of several tree species belonging to the genus Durio. The name 'durian' is derived from the Malay-Indonesian languages word for duri or "spike", a reference to the numerous spike protuberances of the fruit, together with the noun-building suffix -an. There are 30 recognised Durio species, at least nine of which produce edible fruit. Durio zibethinus is the only species available in the international market: other species are sold in their local regions.

 

Regarded by many people in southeast Asia as the "king of fruits", the durian is distinctive for its large size, strong odour, and formidable thorn-covered husk. The fruit can grow as large as 30 centimetres long and 15 centimetres in diameter, and it typically weighs one to three kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale yellow to red, depending on the species.

 

The edible flesh emits a distinctive odour that is strong and penetrating even when the husk is intact. Some people regard the durian as having a pleasantly sweet fragrance; others find the aroma overpowering and revolting. The smell evokes reactions from deep appreciation to intense disgust, and has been described variously as rotten onions, turpentine, and raw sewage. The persistence of its odour has led to the fruit's banishment from certain hotels and public transportation in Southeast Asia.

 

The durian, native to Southeast Asia, has been known to the Western world for about 600 years. The nineteenth-century British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace described its flesh as "a rich custard highly flavoured with almonds". The flesh can be consumed at various stages of ripeness, and it is used to flavour a wide variety of savoury and sweet edibles in Southeast Asian cuisines. The seeds can also be eaten when cooked.

 

There are hundreds of durian cultivars; many consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

 

TAXONOMY

The genus Durio is placed by some taxonomists in the family Bombacaceae, or by others in a broadly defined Malvaceae that includes Bombacaceae, and by others in a smaller family of just seven genera Durionaceae.

 

DESCRIPTION

Durian trees are large, growing to 25–50 metres in height depending on the species. The leaves are evergreen, elliptic to oblong and 10–18 centimetres long. The flowers are produced in three to thirty clusters together on large branches and directly on the trunk with each flower having a calyx (sepals) and five (rarely four or six) petals. Durian trees have one or two flowering and fruiting periods per year, although the timing varies depending on the species, cultivars, and localities. A typical durian tree can bear fruit after four or five years. The durian fruit can hang from any branch and matures roughly three months after pollination. The fruit can grow up to 30 centimetres long and 15 centimetres in diameter, and typically weighs one to three kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale-yellow to red, depending on the species. Among the thirty known species of Durio, nine of them have been identified as producing edible fruits: D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. grandiflorus, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. macrantha, D. oxleyanus, and D. testudinarum. There are many species for which the fruit has never been collected or properly examined, however, so other species with edible fruit may exist. The durian is somewhat similar in appearance to the jackfruit, an unrelated species.

 

The name durian comes from the Malay word duri (thorn) together with the suffix -an (for building a noun in Malay). D. zibethinus is the only species commercially cultivated on a large scale and available outside of its native region. Since this species is open-pollinated, it shows considerable diversity in fruit colour and odour, size of flesh and seed, and tree phenology. In the species name, zibethinus refers to the Indian civet, Viverra zibetha. There is disagreement regarding whether this name, bestowed by Linnaeus, refers to civets being so fond of the durian that the fruit was used as bait to entrap them, or to the durian smelling like the civet.

 

Durian flowers are large and feathery with copious nectar, and give off a heavy, sour, and buttery odour. These features are typical of flowers pollinated by certain species of bats that eat nectar and pollen. According to research conducted in Malaysia in the 1970s, durians were pollinated almost exclusively by cave fruit bats (Eonycteris spelaea); however, a 1996 study indicated two species, D. grandiflorus and D. oblongus, were pollinated by spiderhunters (Nectariniidae) and another species, D. kutejensis, was pollinated by giant honey bees and birds as well as bats.

 

CULTIVARS

Over the centuries, numerous durian cultivars, propagated by vegetative clones, have arisen in southeast Asia. They used to be grown with mixed results from seeds of trees bearing superior quality fruit, but now are propagated by layering, marcotting, or more commonly, by grafting, including bud, veneer, wedge, whip or U-grafting onto seedlings of randomly selected rootstocks. Different cultivars may be distinguished to some extent by variations in the fruit shape, such as the shape of the spines. Durian consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

 

Most cultivars have a common name and a code number starting with "D". For example, some popular clones are Kop (D99 Thai: กบ – "frog" [kòp]), Chanee (D123, Thai: ชะนี – gibbon [tɕʰániː]), Berserah or Green Durian or Tuan Mek Hijau (D145 Thai: ทุเรียนเขียว – Green Durian [tʰúriːən kʰǐow]), Kan Yao (D158, Thai: ก้านยาว – Long Stem [kâːn jaːw]), Mon Thong (D159, Thai: หมอนทอง – Golden Pillow [mɔ̌ːn tʰɔːŋ]), Kradum Thong (Thai: กระดุมทอง – Golden Button [kràdum tʰɔːŋ]), and with no common name, D24 and D169. Each cultivar has a distinct taste and odour. More than 200 cultivars of D. zibethinus exist in Thailand.

 

Mon thong is the most commercially sought after for its thick, full-bodied creamy and mild sweet tasting flesh with relatively moderate smell emitted and smaller seeds, while Chanee is the best in terms of its resistance to infection by Phytophthora palmivora. Kan Yao is somewhat less common, but prized for its longer window of time when it is both sweet and odorless at the same time. Among all the cultivars in Thailand, five are currently in large-scale commercial cultivation: Chanee, Mon Thong, Kan Yao, Ruang, and Kradum. There are more than 100 registered cultivars since 1920's in Malaysia and up to 193 cultivar by 1992, and many superior cultivars have been identified through competitions held at the annual Malaysian Agriculture, Horticulture, and Agrotourism Show. In Vietnam, the same process has been achieved through competitions held by the Southern Fruit Research Institute. A recently popular variety is, Cat Mountain King or Musang King.

 

By 2007, Songpol Somsri, a Thai government scientist, had crossbred more than ninety varieties of durian to create Chantaburi No. 1, a cultivar without the characteristic odour. Another hybrid, Chantaburi No. 3, develops the odour about three days after the fruit is picked, which enables an odourless transport yet satisfies consumers who prefer the pungent odour. On 22 May 2012, two other cultivars from Thailand that also lack the usual odour, Long Laplae and Lin Laplae, were presented to the public by Yothin Samutkhiri, governor of Uttaradit province from where these cultivars were developed locally, while he announced the dates for the yearly durian fair of Laplae District, and the name giver to both cultivars.

 

Popular cultivars in Malaysia and Singapore (Singapore imports most of its durians from Malaysia hence the varieties are similar although there may be slight variation in the names) include "D24" which is a popular variety known for its bitter sweet taste; "XO" which has a pale color, thick flesh with a tinge of alcoholic fermentation; "Chook Kiok" (Cantonese meaning: bamboo leg) which has a distinctive yellowish core in the inner stem and "Musang King" ( Musang is the Malay word for civet cat) which is usually the priciest of all cultivars. Musang King has bright yellow flesh and is almost like a more potent or enhanced version of the D24. This particular variety should be consumed last since it tends to make other durians taste bland in comparison.

 

CULTIVATION AND AVAIBILITY

The durian is native to Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia.[8] There is some debate as to whether the durian is native to the Philippines, particularly the Davao region in the island of Mindanao, or was introduced. The durian is grown in other areas with a similar climate; it is strictly tropical and stops growing when mean daily temperatures drop below 22 °C.

 

The centre of ecological diversity for durians is the island of Borneo, where the fruit of the edible species of Durio including D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. oxleyanus and D. testudinarum is sold in local markets. In Brunei, D. zibethinus is not grown because consumers prefer other species such as D. graveolens, D. kutejensis and D. oxleyanus. These species are commonly distributed in Brunei, and together with other species like D. testudinarum and D. dulcis, represent rich genetic diversity.

 

Although the durian is not native to Thailand, the country is currently one of the major exporters of durians, growing 781,000 tonnes of the world's total harvest of 1,400,000 tonnes in 1999, 111,000 tonnes of which it exported to Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore and Canada. Malaysia and Indonesia follow, both producing about 265,000 tonnes each. Of this, Malaysia exported 35,000 tonnes in 1999. Chantaburi in Thailand each year holds the World Durian Festival in early May. This single province is responsible for half of the durian production of Thailand. In the Philippines, the centre of durian production is the Davao Region. The Kadayawan Festival is an annual celebration featuring the durian in Davao City. Other places where durian farms are located include Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, India, the West Indies, Florida, Hawaii, Papua New Guinea, the Polynesian Islands, Madagascar, southern China (Hainan Island), northern Australia, and Singapore.

 

Durian was introduced into Australia in the early 1960s and clonal material was first introduced in 1975. Over thirty clones of D. zibethinus and six Durio species have been subsequently introduced into Australia. China is the major importer, purchasing 65,000 tonnes in 1999, followed by Singapore with 40,000 tonnes and Taiwan with 5,000 tonnes. In the same year, the United States imported 2,000 tonnes, mostly frozen, and the European Community imported 500 tonnes.

 

The durian is a seasonal fruit, unlike some other non-seasonal tropical fruits such as the papaya, which are available throughout the year. In Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, the season for durians is typically from June to August, which coincides with that of the mangosteen. Prices of durians are relatively high as compared with other fruits. For example, in Singapore, the strong demand for high quality cultivars such as the D24, Sultan, and Mao Shan Wang has resulted in typical retail prices of between S$8 to S$15 (US$5 to US$10) per kilogram of whole fruit. With an average weight of about 1.5 kilograms, a durian fruit would therefore cost about S$12 to S$22 (US$8 to US$15). The edible portion of the fruit, known as the aril and usually referred to as the "flesh" or "pulp", only accounts for about 15–30% of the mass of the entire fruit. Many consumers in Singapore are nevertheless quite willing to spend up to around S$75 (US$50) on a single purchase of about half a dozen of the favoured fruit to be shared by family members.

 

In-season durians can be found in mainstream Japanese supermarkets, while in the West they are sold mainly by Asian markets.

 

FLAVOUR AND ODOUR

The unusual flavour and odour of the fruit have prompted many people to express diverse and passionate views ranging from deep appreciation to intense disgust. Writing in 1856, the British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace provided a much-quoted description of the flavour of the durian:

 

The five cells are silky-white within, and are filled with a mass of firm, cream-coloured pulp, containing about three seeds each. This pulp is the edible part, and its consistence and flavour are indescribable. A rich custard highly flavoured with almonds gives the best general idea of it, but there are occasional wafts of flavour that call to mind cream-cheese, onion-sauce, sherry-wine, and other incongruous dishes. Then there is a rich glutinous smoothness in the pulp which nothing else possesses, but which adds to its delicacy. It is neither acidic nor sweet nor juicy; yet it wants neither of these qualities, for it is in itself perfect. It produces no nausea or other bad effect, and the more you eat of it the less you feel inclined to stop. In fact, to eat Durians is a new sensation worth a voyage to the East to experience. ... as producing a food of the most exquisite flavour it is unsurpassed.

 

Wallace described himself as being at first reluctant to try it because of the aroma, "but in Borneo I found a ripe fruit on the ground, and, eating it out of doors, I at once became a confirmed Durian eater." He cited one traveller from 1599: "it is of such an excellent taste that it surpasses in flavour all other fruits of the world, according to those who have tasted it." He cites another writer: "To those not used to it, it seems at first to smell like rotten onions, but immediately after they have tasted it they prefer it to all other food. The natives give it honourable titles, exalt it, and make verses on it." Despite having tried many foods that are arguably more eccentric, Andrew Zimmern, host of Bizarre Foods, was unable to finish a durian upon sampling it, due to his intolerance of its strong taste.

 

While Wallace cautions that "the smell of the ripe fruit is certainly at first disagreeable", later descriptions by westerners are more graphic. Novelist Anthony Burgess writes that eating durian is "like eating sweet raspberry blancmange in the lavatory". Chef Andrew Zimmern compares the taste to "completely rotten, mushy onions". Anthony Bourdain, a lover of durian, relates his encounter with the fruit thus: "Its taste can only be described as...indescribable, something you will either love or despise. ...Your breath will smell as if you'd been French-kissing your dead grandmother." Likewise, fellow chef Jamie Oliver has also expressed admiration for the fruit on his first sampling. Travel and food writer Richard Sterling says:

 

... its odor is best described as pig-shit, turpentine and onions, garnished with a gym sock. It can be smelled from yards away. Despite its great local popularity, the raw fruit is forbidden from some establishments such as hotels, subways and airports, including public transportation in Southeast Asia.

 

Other comparisons have been made with the civet, sewage, stale vomit, skunk spray and used surgical swabs. The wide range of descriptions for the odour of durian may have a great deal to do with the variability of durian odour itself. Durians from different species or clones can have significantly different aromas; for example, red durian (D. dulcis) has a deep caramel flavour with a turpentine odour while red-fleshed durian (D. graveolens) emits a fragrance of roasted almonds. Among the varieties of D. zibethinus, Thai varieties are sweeter in flavour and less odorous than Malay ones. The degree of ripeness has an effect on the flavour as well. Three scientific analyses of the composition of durian aroma – from 1972, 1980, and 1995 – each found a mix of volatile compounds including esters, ketones, and different sulphur compounds, with no agreement on which may be primarily responsible for the distinctive odour. People in South East Asia with frequent exposures to durian are able to easily distinguish its sweet-like ketones and esters scent from rotten or putrescine odours which are from volatile amines and fatty acids. Developmental or genetic differences in olfactory perception and mapping within the brain ( for e.g. anterior piriform cortex to the orbitofrontal cortex) could possibly explain why some individuals are unable to differentiate these smells and find this fruit noxious.

 

This strong odour can be detected half a mile away by animals, thus luring them. In addition, the fruit is extremely appetising to a variety of animals, including squirrels, mouse deer, pigs, orangutan, elephants, and even carnivorous tigers. While some of these animals eat the fruit and dispose of the seed under the parent plant, others swallow the seed with the fruit and then transport it some distance before excreting, with the seed being dispersed as a result. The thorny, armoured covering of the fruit discourages smaller animals; larger animals are more likely to transport the seeds far from the parent tree.

 

RIPENESS AND SELECTION

According to Larousse Gastronomique, the durian fruit is ready to eat when its husk begins to crack. However, the ideal stage of ripeness to be enjoyed varies from region to region in Southeast Asia and by species. Some species grow so tall that they can only be collected once they have fallen to the ground, whereas most cultivars of D. zibethinus are nearly always cut from the tree and allowed to ripen while waiting to be sold. Some people in southern Thailand prefer their durians relatively young when the clusters of fruit within the shell are still crisp in texture and mild in flavour. For some people in northern Thailand, the preference is for the fruit to be soft and aromatic. In Malaysia and Singapore, most consumers prefer the fruit to be as ripe and pungent in aroma as possible and may even risk allowing the fruit to continue ripening after its husk has already cracked open. In this state, the flesh becomes richly creamy, slightly alcoholic, the aroma pronounced and the flavour highly complex.

 

The various preferences regarding ripeness among consumers make it hard to issue general statements about choosing a "good" durian. A durian that falls off the tree continues to ripen for two to four days, but after five or six days most would consider it overripe and unpalatable. The usual advice for a durian consumer choosing a whole fruit in the market is to examine the quality of the stem or stalk which loses moisture as it ages: a big, solid stem is a sign of freshness. Reportedly, unscrupulous merchants wrap, paint, or remove the stalks altogether. Due to the popularity of Kan Yao, street vendors may sometimes sell a lesser variety with a long stem to unsuspecting customers. Another frequent piece of advice is to shake the fruit and listen for the sound of the seeds moving within, indicating the durian is very ripe and the pulp has dried out a bit.

 

HISTORY

The durian has been known and consumed in Southeast Asia since prehistoric times, but has only been known to the western world for about 600 years. The earliest native reference to durian is the several bas relief panels of 9th-century Borobudur depicting durian as one of fruit offering for Javanese king, and also as one of the fruits sold in marketplace.

 

The earliest known European reference to the durian is the record of Niccolò Da Conti, who travelled to southeastern Asia in the 15th century. Translated from the Latin in which Poggio Bracciolini recorded Da Conti's travels: "They (people of Sumatra) have a green fruit which they call durian, as big as a watermelon. Inside there are five things like elongated oranges, and resembling thick butter, with a combination of flavours." The Portuguese physician Garcia de Orta described durians in Colóquios dos simples e drogas da India published in 1563. In 1741, Herbarium Amboinense by the German botanist Georg Eberhard Rumphius was published, providing the most detailed and accurate account of durians for over a century. The genus Durio has a complex taxonomy that has seen the subtraction and addition of many species since it was created by Rumphius. During the early stages of its taxonomical study, there was some confusion between durian and the soursop (Annona muricata), for both of these species had thorny green fruit. It is also interesting to note the Malay name for the soursop is durian Belanda, meaning Dutch durian. In the 18th century, Johann Anton Weinmann considered the durian to belong to Castaneae as its fruit was similar to the horse chestnut.

 

D. zibethinus was introduced into Ceylon by the Portuguese in the 16th century and was reintroduced many times later. It has been planted in the Americas but confined to botanical gardens. The first seedlings were sent from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, to Auguste Saint-Arroman of Dominica in 1884.

 

In southeastern Asia, the durian has been cultivated for centuries at the village level, probably since the late 18th century, and commercially since the mid-20th century. In My Tropic Isle, Australian author and naturalist Edmund James Banfield tells how, in the early 20th century, a friend in Singapore sent him a durian seed, which he planted and cared for on his tropical island off the north coast of Queensland.

 

In 1949, the British botanist E. J. H. Corner published The Durian Theory, or the Origin of the Modern Tree. His theory was that endozoochory (the enticement of animals to transport seeds in their stomach) arose before any other method of seed dispersal, and that primitive ancestors of Durio species were the earliest practitioners of that dispersal method, in particular red durian (D. dulcis) exemplifying the primitive fruit of flowering plants.

 

Since the early 1990s, the domestic and international demand for durian in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region has increased significantly, partly due to the increasing affluence of Asia.

 

USES

CULINARY

Durian fruit is used to flavour a wide variety of sweet edibles such as traditional Malay candy, ice kacang, dodol, lempuk, rose biscuits, and, with a touch of modern innovation, ice cream, milkshakes, mooncakes, Yule logs, and cappuccino. Es durian (durian ice cream) is a popular dessert in Indonesia, sold at street side stall in Indonesian cities, especially in Java. Pulut Durian or ketan durian is glutinous rice steamed with coconut milk and served with ripened durian. In Sabah, red durian is fried with onions and chilli and served as a side dish. Red-fleshed durian is traditionally added to sayur, an Indonesian soup made from freshwater fish. Ikan brengkes is fish cooked in a durian-based sauce, traditional in Sumatra. Traditionally Bollen pastry, specialty of Bandung is filled with banana and cheese. Today Bollen durian is also available, it is pastry filled with durian. Dried durian flesh can be made into kripik durian (durian chips).

 

Tempoyak refers to fermented durian, usually made from lower quality durian that is unsuitable for direct consumption. Tempoyak can be eaten either cooked or uncooked, is normally eaten with rice, and can also be used for making curry. Sambal Tempoyak is a Sumatran dish made from the fermented durian fruit, coconut milk, and a collection of spicy ingredients known as sambal.

 

In Thailand, durian is often eaten fresh with sweet sticky rice, and blocks of durian paste are sold in the markets, though much of the paste is adulterated with pumpkin. Unripe durians may be cooked as a vegetable, except in the Philippines, where all uses are sweet rather than savoury. Malaysians make both sugared and salted preserves from durian. When durian is minced with salt, onions and vinegar, it is called boder. The durian seeds, which are the size of chestnuts, can be eaten whether they are boiled, roasted or fried in coconut oil, with a texture that is similar to taro or yam, but stickier. In Java, the seeds are sliced thin and cooked with sugar as a confection. Uncooked durian seeds are toxic due to cyclopropene fatty acids and should not be ingested.

 

Young leaves and shoots of the durian are occasionally cooked as greens. Sometimes the ash of the burned rind is added to special cakes. The petals of durian flowers are eaten in the North Sumatra province of Indonesia, while in the Moluccas islands the husk of the durian fruit is used as fuel to smoke fish. The nectar and pollen of the durian flower that honeybees collect is an important honey source, but the characteristics of the honey are unknown.

 

NUTRITIONS AND FOLK MEDICINE

Durian fruit contains a high amount of sugar, vitamin C, potassium, and the serotonergic amino acid tryptophan, and is a good source of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. It is recommended as a good source of raw fats by several raw food advocates, while others classify it as a high-glycemic food, recommending to minimise its consumption.

 

In Malaysia, a decoction of the leaves and roots used to be prescribed as an antipyretic. The leaf juice is applied on the head of a fever patient. The most complete description of the medicinal use of the durian as remedies for fevers is a Malay prescription, collected by Burkill and Haniff in 1930. It instructs the reader to boil the roots of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis with the roots of Durio zibethinus, Nephelium longan, Nephelium mutabile and Artocarpus integrifolia, and drink the decoction or use it as a poultice.

 

In the 1920s, Durian Fruit Products, Inc., of New York City launched a product called "Dur-India" as a health food supplement, selling at US$9 for a dozen bottles, each containing 63 tablets. The tablets allegedly contained durian and a species of the genus Allium from India and vitamin E. The company promoted the supplement saying that it provides "more concentrated healthful energy in food form than any other product the world affords".

 

CUSTOMS AND BELIEFS

Southeast Asian traditional beliefs, as well as traditional Chinese medicine, consider the durian fruit to have warming properties liable to cause excessive sweating. The traditional method to counteract this is to pour water into the empty shell of the fruit after the pulp has been consumed and drink it. An alternative method is to eat the durian in accompaniment with mangosteen, which is considered to have cooling properties. Pregnant women or people with high blood pressure are traditionally advised not to consume durian.

 

Another common local belief is that the durian is harmful when eaten with coffee or alcoholic beverages. The latter belief can be traced back at least to the 18th century when Rumphius stated that one should not drink alcohol after eating durians as it will cause indigestion and bad breath. In 1929, J. D. Gimlette wrote in his Malay Poisons and Charm Cures that the durian fruit must not be eaten with brandy. In 1981, J. R. Croft wrote in his Bombacaceae: In Handbooks of the Flora of Papua New Guinea that "a feeling of morbidity" often follows the consumption of alcohol too soon after eating durian. Several medical investigations on the validity of this belief have been conducted with varying conclusions, though a study by the University of Tsukuba finds the fruit's high sulphur content inhibits the activity of aldehyde dehydrogenase, causing a 70% reduction of the ability to clear toxins from the body.

 

The Javanese believe durian to have aphrodisiac qualities, and impose a set of rules on what may or may not be consumed with it or shortly thereafter. A saying in Indonesian, durian jatuh sarung naik, meaning "the durian falls and the sarong comes up", refers to this belief. The warnings against the supposed lecherous quality of this fruit soon spread to the West – the Swedenborgian philosopher Herman Vetterling commented on so-called "erotic properties" of the durian in the early 20th century.

 

A durian falling on a person's head can cause serious injuries because it is heavy, armed with sharp thorns, and can fall from a significant height. Wearing a hardhat is recommended when collecting the fruit. Alfred Russel Wallace writes that death rarely ensues from it, because the copious effusion of blood prevents the inflammation which might otherwise take place. A common saying is that a durian has eyes and can see where it is falling because the fruit allegedly never falls during daylight hours when people may be hurt. A saying in Indonesian, ketiban durian runtuh, which translates to "getting a durian avalanche", is the equivalent of the English phrase "windfall gain". Nevertheless, signs warning people not to linger under durian trees are found in Indonesia. Strong nylon or woven rope nettings are often strung between durian trees in orchards, serving a threefold purpose: the nets aid in the collection of the mature fruits, deter ground-level scavengers, and most importantly, prevent the durians from falling onto people.

 

A naturally spineless variety of durian growing wild in Davao, Philippines, was discovered in the 1960s; fruits borne from these seeds also lacked spines. Since the bases of the scales develop into spines as the fruit matures, sometimes spineless durians are produced artificially by scraping scales off immature fruits. In Malaysia, a spinesless durian clone D172 is registered by Agriculture Department on 17 June 1989. It was called "Durian Botak" (Bald Durian). In Indonesia, Ir Sumeru Ashari, head of Durian Research Centre, Universitas Brawijaya reported spineless durian from Kasembon, Malang. Another cultivar is from Lombok, Nusa Tenggara Barat, Indonesia.

 

Animals such as Sumatran elephants are known to consume durians. Curiously, the carnivorous Sumatran tiger is also known to consume durian occasionally. The strong odour of the fallen fruits in the jungle probably attracts the tiger to inspect the fruit and lick it.

 

CULTURAL INFLUENCE

The durian is commonly known as the "King of the Fruits", a label that can be attributed to its formidable look and overpowering odour. In its native southeastern Asia, the durian is an everyday food and portrayed in the local media in accordance with the cultural perception it has in the region. The durian symbolised the subjective nature of ugliness and beauty in Hong Kong director Fruit Chan's 2000 film Durian Durian (榴槤飄飄, lau lin piu piu), and was a nickname for the reckless but lovable protagonist of the eponymous Singaporean TV comedy Durian King played by Adrian Pang. Likewise, the oddly shaped Esplanade building in Singapore is often called "The Durian" by locals, and "The Big Durian" is the nickname of Jakarta, Indonesia.

 

One of the names Thailand contributed to the list of storm names for Western North Pacific tropical cyclones was 'Durian', which was retired after the second storm of this name in 2006. Being a fruit much loved by a variety of wild beasts, the durian sometimes signifies the long-forgotten animalistic aspect of humans, as in the legend of Orang Mawas, the Malaysian version of Bigfoot, and Orang Pendek, its Sumatran version, both of which have been claimed to feast on durians.

 

Frozen whole durians are shipped from Thailand to Asian markets and Chinatowns in Western countries.

 

WIKIPEDIA

. . . the Durian is the queen of fruits

 

The durian (/ˈdjʊriən/) is the fruit of several tree species belonging to the genus Durio. The name 'durian' is derived from the Malay-Indonesian languages word for duri or "spike", a reference to the numerous spike protuberances of the fruit, together with the noun-building suffix -an. There are 30 recognised Durio species, at least nine of which produce edible fruit. Durio zibethinus is the only species available in the international market: other species are sold in their local regions.

 

Regarded by many people in southeast Asia as the "king of fruits", the durian is distinctive for its large size, strong odour, and formidable thorn-covered husk. The fruit can grow as large as 30 centimetres long and 15 centimetres in diameter, and it typically weighs one to three kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale yellow to red, depending on the species.

 

The edible flesh emits a distinctive odour that is strong and penetrating even when the husk is intact. Some people regard the durian as having a pleasantly sweet fragrance; others find the aroma overpowering and revolting. The smell evokes reactions from deep appreciation to intense disgust, and has been described variously as rotten onions, turpentine, and raw sewage. The persistence of its odour has led to the fruit's banishment from certain hotels and public transportation in Southeast Asia.

 

The durian, native to Southeast Asia, has been known to the Western world for about 600 years. The nineteenth-century British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace described its flesh as "a rich custard highly flavoured with almonds". The flesh can be consumed at various stages of ripeness, and it is used to flavour a wide variety of savoury and sweet edibles in Southeast Asian cuisines. The seeds can also be eaten when cooked.

 

There are hundreds of durian cultivars; many consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

 

TAXONOMY

The genus Durio is placed by some taxonomists in the family Bombacaceae, or by others in a broadly defined Malvaceae that includes Bombacaceae, and by others in a smaller family of just seven genera Durionaceae.

 

DESCRIPTION

Durian trees are large, growing to 25–50 metres in height depending on the species. The leaves are evergreen, elliptic to oblong and 10–18 centimetres long. The flowers are produced in three to thirty clusters together on large branches and directly on the trunk with each flower having a calyx (sepals) and five (rarely four or six) petals. Durian trees have one or two flowering and fruiting periods per year, although the timing varies depending on the species, cultivars, and localities. A typical durian tree can bear fruit after four or five years. The durian fruit can hang from any branch and matures roughly three months after pollination. The fruit can grow up to 30 centimetres long and 15 centimetres (6 in) in diameter, and typically weighs one to three kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale-yellow to red, depending on the species. Among the thirty known species of Durio, nine of them have been identified as producing edible fruits: D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. grandiflorus, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. macrantha, D. oxleyanus, and D. testudinarum. There are many species for which the fruit has never been collected or properly examined, however, so other species with edible fruit may exist. The durian is somewhat similar in appearance to the jackfruit, an unrelated species.

 

The name durian comes from the Malay word duri (thorn) together with the suffix -an (for building a noun in Malay). D. zibethinus is the only species commercially cultivated on a large scale and available outside of its native region. Since this species is open-pollinated, it shows considerable diversity in fruit colour and odour, size of flesh and seed, and tree phenology. In the species name, zibethinus refers to the Indian civet, Viverra zibetha. There is disagreement regarding whether this name, bestowed by Linnaeus, refers to civets being so fond of the durian that the fruit was used as bait to entrap them, or to the durian smelling like the civet.

 

Durian flowers are large and feathery with copious nectar, and give off a heavy, sour, and buttery odour. These features are typical of flowers pollinated by certain species of bats that eat nectar and pollen. According to research conducted in Malaysia in the 1970s, durians were pollinated almost exclusively by cave fruit bats (Eonycteris spelaea); however, a 1996 study indicated two species, D. grandiflorus and D. oblongus, were pollinated by spiderhunters (Nectariniidae) and another species, D. kutejensis, was pollinated by giant honey bees and birds as well as bats.

 

CULTIVARS

Over the centuries, numerous durian cultivars, propagated by vegetative clones, have arisen in southeast Asia. They used to be grown with mixed results from seeds of trees bearing superior quality fruit, but now are propagated by layering, marcotting, or more commonly, by grafting, including bud, veneer, wedge, whip or U-grafting onto seedlings of randomly selected rootstocks. Different cultivars may be distinguished to some extent by variations in the fruit shape, such as the shape of the spines. Durian consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

 

Most cultivars have a common name and a code number starting with "D". For example, some popular clones are Kop (D99 Thai: กบ – "frog" [kòp]), Chanee (D123, Thai: ชะนี – gibbon [tɕʰániː]), Berserah or Green Durian or Tuan Mek Hijau (D145 Thai: ทุเรียนเขียว – Green Durian [tʰúriːən kʰǐow]), Kan Yao (D158, Thai: ก้านยาว – Long Stem [kâːn jaːw]), Mon Thong (D159, Thai: หมอนทอง – Golden Pillow [mɔ̌ːn tʰɔːŋ]), Kradum Thong (Thai: กระดุมทอง – Golden Button [kràdum tʰɔːŋ]), and with no common name, D24 and D169. Each cultivar has a distinct taste and odour. More than 200 cultivars of D. zibethinus exist in Thailand.

 

Mon thong is the most commercially sought after for its thick, full-bodied creamy and mild sweet tasting flesh with relatively moderate smell emitted and smaller seeds, while Chanee is the best in terms of its resistance to infection by Phytophthora palmivora. Kan Yao is somewhat less common, but prized for its longer window of time when it is both sweet and odorless at the same time. Among all the cultivars in Thailand, five are currently in large-scale commercial cultivation: Chanee, Mon Thong, Kan Yao, Ruang, and Kradum. There are more than 100 registered cultivars since 1920's in Malaysia and up to 193 cultivar by 1992, and many superior cultivars have been identified through competitions held at the annual Malaysian Agriculture, Horticulture, and Agrotourism Show. In Vietnam, the same process has been achieved through competitions held by the Southern Fruit Research Institute. A recently popular variety is, Cat Mountain King or Musang King.

 

By 2007, Songpol Somsri, a Thai government scientist, had crossbred more than ninety varieties of durian to create Chantaburi No. 1, a cultivar without the characteristic odour. Another hybrid, Chantaburi No. 3, develops the odour about three days after the fruit is picked, which enables an odourless transport yet satisfies consumers who prefer the pungent odour. On 22 May 2012, two other cultivars from Thailand that also lack the usual odour, Long Laplae and Lin Laplae, were presented to the public by Yothin Samutkhiri, governor of Uttaradit province from where these cultivars were developed locally, while he announced the dates for the yearly durian fair of Laplae District, and the name giver to both cultivars.

 

Popular cultivars in Malaysia and Singapore (Singapore imports most of its durians from Malaysia hence the varieties are similar although there may be slight variation in the names) include "D24" which is a popular variety known for its bitter sweet taste; "XO" which has a pale color, thick flesh with a tinge of alcoholic fermentation; "Chook Kiok" (Cantonese meaning: bamboo leg) which has a distinctive yellowish core in the inner stem and "Musang King" ( Musang is the Malay word for civet cat) which is usually the priciest of all cultivars. Musang King has bright yellow flesh and is almost like a more potent or enhanced version of the D24. This particular variety should be consumed last since it tends to make other durians taste bland in comparison.

 

CULTIVATION AND AVAIBILITY

The durian is native to Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia.[8] There is some debate as to whether the durian is native to the Philippines, particularly the Davao region in the island of Mindanao, or was introduced. The durian is grown in other areas with a similar climate; it is strictly tropical and stops growing when mean daily temperatures drop below 22 °C.

 

The centre of ecological diversity for durians is the island of Borneo, where the fruit of the edible species of Durio including D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. oxleyanus and D. testudinarum is sold in local markets. In Brunei, D. zibethinus is not grown because consumers prefer other species such as D. graveolens, D. kutejensis and D. oxleyanus. These species are commonly distributed in Brunei, and together with other species like D. testudinarum and D. dulcis, represent rich genetic diversity.

 

Although the durian is not native to Thailand, the country is currently one of the major exporters of durians, growing 781,000 tonnes of the world's total harvest of 1,400,000 tonnes in 1999, 111,000 tonnes of which it exported to Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore and Canada. Malaysia and Indonesia follow, both producing about 265,000 tonnes each. Of this, Malaysia exported 35,000 tonnes in 1999. Chantaburi in Thailand each year holds the World Durian Festival in early May. This single province is responsible for half of the durian production of Thailand. In the Philippines, the centre of durian production is the Davao Region. The Kadayawan Festival is an annual celebration featuring the durian in Davao City. Other places where durian farms are located include Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, India, the West Indies, Florida, Hawaii, Papua New Guinea, the Polynesian Islands, Madagascar, southern China (Hainan Island), northern Australia, and Singapore.

 

Durian was introduced into Australia in the early 1960s and clonal material was first introduced in 1975. Over thirty clones of D. zibethinus and six Durio species have been subsequently introduced into Australia. China is the major importer, purchasing 65,000 tonnes in 1999, followed by Singapore with 40,000 tonnes and Taiwan with 5,000 tonnes. In the same year, the United States imported 2,000 tonnes, mostly frozen, and the European Community imported 500 tonnes.

 

The durian is a seasonal fruit, unlike some other non-seasonal tropical fruits such as the papaya, which are available throughout the year. In Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, the season for durians is typically from June to August, which coincides with that of the mangosteen. Prices of durians are relatively high as compared with other fruits. For example, in Singapore, the strong demand for high quality cultivars such as the D24, Sultan, and Mao Shan Wang has resulted in typical retail prices of between S$8 to S$15 (US$5 to US$10) per kilogram of whole fruit. With an average weight of about 1.5 kilograms, a durian fruit would therefore cost about S$12 to S$22 (US$8 to US$15). The edible portion of the fruit, known as the aril and usually referred to as the "flesh" or "pulp", only accounts for about 15–30% of the mass of the entire fruit. Many consumers in Singapore are nevertheless quite willing to spend up to around S$75 (US$50) on a single purchase of about half a dozen of the favoured fruit to be shared by family members.

 

In-season durians can be found in mainstream Japanese supermarkets, while in the West they are sold mainly by Asian markets.

 

FLAVOUR AND ODOUR

The unusual flavour and odour of the fruit have prompted many people to express diverse and passionate views ranging from deep appreciation to intense disgust. Writing in 1856, the British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace provided a much-quoted description of the flavour of the durian:

 

The five cells are silky-white within, and are filled with a mass of firm, cream-coloured pulp, containing about three seeds each. This pulp is the edible part, and its consistence and flavour are indescribable. A rich custard highly flavoured with almonds gives the best general idea of it, but there are occasional wafts of flavour that call to mind cream-cheese, onion-sauce, sherry-wine, and other incongruous dishes. Then there is a rich glutinous smoothness in the pulp which nothing else possesses, but which adds to its delicacy. It is neither acidic nor sweet nor juicy; yet it wants neither of these qualities, for it is in itself perfect. It produces no nausea or other bad effect, and the more you eat of it the less you feel inclined to stop. In fact, to eat Durians is a new sensation worth a voyage to the East to experience. ... as producing a food of the most exquisite flavour it is unsurpassed.

 

Wallace described himself as being at first reluctant to try it because of the aroma, "but in Borneo I found a ripe fruit on the ground, and, eating it out of doors, I at once became a confirmed Durian eater." He cited one traveller from 1599: "it is of such an excellent taste that it surpasses in flavour all other fruits of the world, according to those who have tasted it." He cites another writer: "To those not used to it, it seems at first to smell like rotten onions, but immediately after they have tasted it they prefer it to all other food. The natives give it honourable titles, exalt it, and make verses on it." Despite having tried many foods that are arguably more eccentric, Andrew Zimmern, host of Bizarre Foods, was unable to finish a durian upon sampling it, due to his intolerance of its strong taste.

 

While Wallace cautions that "the smell of the ripe fruit is certainly at first disagreeable", later descriptions by westerners are more graphic. Novelist Anthony Burgess writes that eating durian is "like eating sweet raspberry blancmange in the lavatory". Chef Andrew Zimmern compares the taste to "completely rotten, mushy onions". Anthony Bourdain, a lover of durian, relates his encounter with the fruit thus: "Its taste can only be described as...indescribable, something you will either love or despise. ...Your breath will smell as if you'd been French-kissing your dead grandmother." Likewise, fellow chef Jamie Oliver has also expressed admiration for the fruit on his first sampling. Travel and food writer Richard Sterling says:

 

... its odor is best described as pig-shit, turpentine and onions, garnished with a gym sock. It can be smelled from yards away. Despite its great local popularity, the raw fruit is forbidden from some establishments such as hotels, subways and airports, including public transportation in Southeast Asia.

 

Other comparisons have been made with the civet, sewage, stale vomit, skunk spray and used surgical swabs. The wide range of descriptions for the odour of durian may have a great deal to do with the variability of durian odour itself. Durians from different species or clones can have significantly different aromas; for example, red durian (D. dulcis) has a deep caramel flavour with a turpentine odour while red-fleshed durian (D. graveolens) emits a fragrance of roasted almonds. Among the varieties of D. zibethinus, Thai varieties are sweeter in flavour and less odorous than Malay ones. The degree of ripeness has an effect on the flavour as well. Three scientific analyses of the composition of durian aroma – from 1972, 1980, and 1995 – each found a mix of volatile compounds including esters, ketones, and different sulphur compounds, with no agreement on which may be primarily responsible for the distinctive odour. People in South East Asia with frequent exposures to durian are able to easily distinguish its sweet-like ketones and esters scent from rotten or putrescine odours which are from volatile amines and fatty acids. Developmental or genetic differences in olfactory perception and mapping within the brain ( for e.g. anterior piriform cortex to the orbitofrontal cortex) could possibly explain why some individuals are unable to differentiate these smells and find this fruit noxious.

 

This strong odour can be detected half a mile away by animals, thus luring them. In addition, the fruit is extremely appetising to a variety of animals, including squirrels, mouse deer, pigs, orangutan, elephants, and even carnivorous tigers. While some of these animals eat the fruit and dispose of the seed under the parent plant, others swallow the seed with the fruit and then transport it some distance before excreting, with the seed being dispersed as a result. The thorny, armoured covering of the fruit discourages smaller animals; larger animals are more likely to transport the seeds far from the parent tree.

 

RIPENESS AND SELECTION

According to Larousse Gastronomique, the durian fruit is ready to eat when its husk begins to crack. However, the ideal stage of ripeness to be enjoyed varies from region to region in Southeast Asia and by species. Some species grow so tall that they can only be collected once they have fallen to the ground, whereas most cultivars of D. zibethinus are nearly always cut from the tree and allowed to ripen while waiting to be sold. Some people in southern Thailand prefer their durians relatively young when the clusters of fruit within the shell are still crisp in texture and mild in flavour. For some people in northern Thailand, the preference is for the fruit to be soft and aromatic. In Malaysia and Singapore, most consumers prefer the fruit to be as ripe and pungent in aroma as possible and may even risk allowing the fruit to continue ripening after its husk has already cracked open. In this state, the flesh becomes richly creamy, slightly alcoholic, the aroma pronounced and the flavour highly complex.

 

The various preferences regarding ripeness among consumers make it hard to issue general statements about choosing a "good" durian. A durian that falls off the tree continues to ripen for two to four days, but after five or six days most would consider it overripe and unpalatable. The usual advice for a durian consumer choosing a whole fruit in the market is to examine the quality of the stem or stalk which loses moisture as it ages: a big, solid stem is a sign of freshness. Reportedly, unscrupulous merchants wrap, paint, or remove the stalks altogether. Due to the popularity of Kan Yao, street vendors may sometimes sell a lesser variety with a long stem to unsuspecting customers. Another frequent piece of advice is to shake the fruit and listen for the sound of the seeds moving within, indicating the durian is very ripe and the pulp has dried out a bit.

 

HISTORY

The durian has been known and consumed in Southeast Asia since prehistoric times, but has only been known to the western world for about 600 years. The earliest native reference to durian is the several bas relief panels of 9th-century Borobudur depicting durian as one of fruit offering for Javanese king, and also as one of the fruits sold in marketplace.

 

The earliest known European reference to the durian is the record of Niccolò Da Conti, who travelled to southeastern Asia in the 15th century. Translated from the Latin in which Poggio Bracciolini recorded Da Conti's travels: "They (people of Sumatra) have a green fruit which they call durian, as big as a watermelon. Inside there are five things like elongated oranges, and resembling thick butter, with a combination of flavours." The Portuguese physician Garcia de Orta described durians in Colóquios dos simples e drogas da India published in 1563. In 1741, Herbarium Amboinense by the German botanist Georg Eberhard Rumphius was published, providing the most detailed and accurate account of durians for over a century. The genus Durio has a complex taxonomy that has seen the subtraction and addition of many species since it was created by Rumphius. During the early stages of its taxonomical study, there was some confusion between durian and the soursop (Annona muricata), for both of these species had thorny green fruit. It is also interesting to note the Malay name for the soursop is durian Belanda, meaning Dutch durian. In the 18th century, Johann Anton Weinmann considered the durian to belong to Castaneae as its fruit was similar to the horse chestnut.

 

D. zibethinus was introduced into Ceylon by the Portuguese in the 16th century and was reintroduced many times later. It has been planted in the Americas but confined to botanical gardens. The first seedlings were sent from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, to Auguste Saint-Arroman of Dominica in 1884.

 

In southeastern Asia, the durian has been cultivated for centuries at the village level, probably since the late 18th century, and commercially since the mid-20th century. In My Tropic Isle, Australian author and naturalist Edmund James Banfield tells how, in the early 20th century, a friend in Singapore sent him a durian seed, which he planted and cared for on his tropical island off the north coast of Queensland.

 

In 1949, the British botanist E. J. H. Corner published The Durian Theory, or the Origin of the Modern Tree. His theory was that endozoochory (the enticement of animals to transport seeds in their stomach) arose before any other method of seed dispersal, and that primitive ancestors of Durio species were the earliest practitioners of that dispersal method, in particular red durian (D. dulcis) exemplifying the primitive fruit of flowering plants.

 

Since the early 1990s, the domestic and international demand for durian in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region has increased significantly, partly due to the increasing affluence of Asia.

 

USES

CULINARY

Durian fruit is used to flavour a wide variety of sweet edibles such as traditional Malay candy, ice kacang, dodol, lempuk, rose biscuits, and, with a touch of modern innovation, ice cream, milkshakes, mooncakes, Yule logs, and cappuccino. Es durian (durian ice cream) is a popular dessert in Indonesia, sold at street side stall in Indonesian cities, especially in Java. Pulut Durian or ketan durian is glutinous rice steamed with coconut milk and served with ripened durian. In Sabah, red durian is fried with onions and chilli and served as a side dish. Red-fleshed durian is traditionally added to sayur, an Indonesian soup made from freshwater fish. Ikan brengkes is fish cooked in a durian-based sauce, traditional in Sumatra. Traditionally Bollen pastry, specialty of Bandung is filled with banana and cheese. Today Bollen durian is also available, it is pastry filled with durian. Dried durian flesh can be made into kripik durian (durian chips).

 

Tempoyak refers to fermented durian, usually made from lower quality durian that is unsuitable for direct consumption. Tempoyak can be eaten either cooked or uncooked, is normally eaten with rice, and can also be used for making curry. Sambal Tempoyak is a Sumatran dish made from the fermented durian fruit, coconut milk, and a collection of spicy ingredients known as sambal.

 

In Thailand, durian is often eaten fresh with sweet sticky rice, and blocks of durian paste are sold in the markets, though much of the paste is adulterated with pumpkin. Unripe durians may be cooked as a vegetable, except in the Philippines, where all uses are sweet rather than savoury. Malaysians make both sugared and salted preserves from durian. When durian is minced with salt, onions and vinegar, it is called boder. The durian seeds, which are the size of chestnuts, can be eaten whether they are boiled, roasted or fried in coconut oil, with a texture that is similar to taro or yam, but stickier. In Java, the seeds are sliced thin and cooked with sugar as a confection. Uncooked durian seeds are toxic due to cyclopropene fatty acids and should not be ingested.

 

Young leaves and shoots of the durian are occasionally cooked as greens. Sometimes the ash of the burned rind is added to special cakes. The petals of durian flowers are eaten in the North Sumatra province of Indonesia, while in the Moluccas islands the husk of the durian fruit is used as fuel to smoke fish. The nectar and pollen of the durian flower that honeybees collect is an important honey source, but the characteristics of the honey are unknown.

 

NUTRITIONS AND FOLK MEDICINE

Durian fruit contains a high amount of sugar, vitamin C, potassium, and the serotonergic amino acid tryptophan, and is a good source of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. It is recommended as a good source of raw fats by several raw food advocates, while others classify it as a high-glycemic food, recommending to minimise its consumption.

 

In Malaysia, a decoction of the leaves and roots used to be prescribed as an antipyretic. The leaf juice is applied on the head of a fever patient. The most complete description of the medicinal use of the durian as remedies for fevers is a Malay prescription, collected by Burkill and Haniff in 1930. It instructs the reader to boil the roots of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis with the roots of Durio zibethinus, Nephelium longan, Nephelium mutabile and Artocarpus integrifolia, and drink the decoction or use it as a poultice.

 

In the 1920s, Durian Fruit Products, Inc., of New York City launched a product called "Dur-India" as a health food supplement, selling at US$9 for a dozen bottles, each containing 63 tablets. The tablets allegedly contained durian and a species of the genus Allium from India and vitamin E. The company promoted the supplement saying that it provides "more concentrated healthful energy in food form than any other product the world affords".

 

CUSTOMS AND BELIEFS

Southeast Asian traditional beliefs, as well as traditional Chinese medicine, consider the durian fruit to have warming properties liable to cause excessive sweating. The traditional method to counteract this is to pour water into the empty shell of the fruit after the pulp has been consumed and drink it. An alternative method is to eat the durian in accompaniment with mangosteen, which is considered to have cooling properties. Pregnant women or people with high blood pressure are traditionally advised not to consume durian.

 

Another common local belief is that the durian is harmful when eaten with coffee or alcoholic beverages. The latter belief can be traced back at least to the 18th century when Rumphius stated that one should not drink alcohol after eating durians as it will cause indigestion and bad breath. In 1929, J. D. Gimlette wrote in his Malay Poisons and Charm Cures that the durian fruit must not be eaten with brandy. In 1981, J. R. Croft wrote in his Bombacaceae: In Handbooks of the Flora of Papua New Guinea that "a feeling of morbidity" often follows the consumption of alcohol too soon after eating durian. Several medical investigations on the validity of this belief have been conducted with varying conclusions, though a study by the University of Tsukuba finds the fruit's high sulphur content inhibits the activity of aldehyde dehydrogenase, causing a 70% reduction of the ability to clear toxins from the body.

 

The Javanese believe durian to have aphrodisiac qualities, and impose a set of rules on what may or may not be consumed with it or shortly thereafter. A saying in Indonesian, durian jatuh sarung naik, meaning "the durian falls and the sarong comes up", refers to this belief. The warnings against the supposed lecherous quality of this fruit soon spread to the West – the Swedenborgian philosopher Herman Vetterling commented on so-called "erotic properties" of the durian in the early 20th century.

 

A durian falling on a person's head can cause serious injuries because it is heavy, armed with sharp thorns, and can fall from a significant height. Wearing a hardhat is recommended when collecting the fruit. Alfred Russel Wallace writes that death rarely ensues from it, because the copious effusion of blood prevents the inflammation which might otherwise take place. A common saying is that a durian has eyes and can see where it is falling because the fruit allegedly never falls during daylight hours when people may be hurt. A saying in Indonesian, ketiban durian runtuh, which translates to "getting a durian avalanche", is the equivalent of the English phrase "windfall gain". Nevertheless, signs warning people not to linger under durian trees are found in Indonesia. Strong nylon or woven rope nettings are often strung between durian trees in orchards, serving a threefold purpose: the nets aid in the collection of the mature fruits, deter ground-level scavengers, and most importantly, prevent the durians from falling onto people.

 

A naturally spineless variety of durian growing wild in Davao, Philippines, was discovered in the 1960s; fruits borne from these seeds also lacked spines. Since the bases of the scales develop into spines as the fruit matures, sometimes spineless durians are produced artificially by scraping scales off immature fruits. In Malaysia, a spinesless durian clone D172 is registered by Agriculture Department on 17 June 1989. It was called "Durian Botak" (Bald Durian). In Indonesia, Ir Sumeru Ashari, head of Durian Research Centre, Universitas Brawijaya reported spineless durian from Kasembon, Malang. Another cultivar is from Lombok, Nusa Tenggara Barat, Indonesia.

 

Animals such as Sumatran elephants are known to consume durians. Curiously, the carnivorous Sumatran tiger is also known to consume durian occasionally. The strong odour of the fallen fruits in the jungle probably attracts the tiger to inspect the fruit and lick it.

 

CULTURAL INFLUENCE

The durian is commonly known as the "King of the Fruits", a label that can be attributed to its formidable look and overpowering odour. In its native southeastern Asia, the durian is an everyday food and portrayed in the local media in accordance with the cultural perception it has in the region. The durian symbolised the subjective nature of ugliness and beauty in Hong Kong director Fruit Chan's 2000 film Durian Durian (榴槤飄飄, lau lin piu piu), and was a nickname for the reckless but lovable protagonist of the eponymous Singaporean TV comedy Durian King played by Adrian Pang. Likewise, the oddly shaped Esplanade building in Singapore is often called "The Durian" by locals, and "The Big Durian" is the nickname of Jakarta, Indonesia.

 

One of the names Thailand contributed to the list of storm names for Western North Pacific tropical cyclones was 'Durian', which was retired after the second storm of this name in 2006. Being a fruit much loved by a variety of wild beasts, the durian sometimes signifies the long-forgotten animalistic aspect of humans, as in the legend of Orang Mawas, the Malaysian version of Bigfoot, and Orang Pendek, its Sumatran version, both of which have been claimed to feast on durians.

 

Frozen whole durians are shipped from Thailand to Asian markets and Chinatowns in Western countries.

 

WIKIPEDIA

Inside the various climates of the Princess of Wales Conservatory at Kew Gardens ...

 

From Wikipedia -

Frankincense, also called olibanum (Arabic: لُبَّانٌ, lubbān; Chinese: 乳香 Ru Xiang; Somali: luubaan; Hindi: धुप Dhoop; Hebrew: לבונה, levonah), is an aromatic resin obtained from trees of the genus Boswellia, particularly Boswellia sacra, B. carteri, B. thurifera, B. frereana and B. bhaw-dajiana (Burseraceae). The English word is derived from old French "franc encens" (i.e. high quality incense) and is used in incense and perfumes.

 

There are four main species of Boswellia that produce true frankincense and resin from each of the four is available in various grades. The grades depend on the time of harvesting. The resin is hand-sorted for quality.

 

Frankincense can also be found in the Bible as one of the three gifts the wise men gave to baby Jesus.

 

Frankincense is tapped from the scraggly but hardy trees by slashing the bark, which is called striping, and allowing the exuded resin to bleed out and harden. These hardened resins are called tears. The aroma from these tears are more valuable for their presumed healing abilities and are also said to have superior qualities for religious ritual.

 

There are several species and varieties of frankincense trees, each producing a slightly different type of resin. Differences in soil and climate create even more diversity of the resin, even within the same species. Boswellia Sacra trees are considered unusual for their ability to grow in environments so unforgiving that they sometimes grow out of solid rock. The initial means of attachment to the rock is unknown but is accomplished by a bulbous disk-like swelling of the trunk. This growth prevents it from being ripped from the rock during violent storms that frequent this region. This feature is slight or absent in trees grown in rocky soil or gravel. The trees start producing resin when they are about eight to 10 years old. Tapping is done two to three times a year with the final taps producing the best tears due to their higher aromatic terpene, sesquiterpene and diterpene content. Generally speaking, the more opaque resins are the best quality. Fine resin is produced in Yemen and along the northern coast of Somalia, from which the Roman Catholic Church draws its supplies.

 

Recent studies have indicated that frankincense tree populations are declining, partly due to over-exploitation. Heavily tapped trees produce seeds that germinate at only 16% while seeds of trees that had not been tapped germinate at more than 80%. In addition, burning, grazing, and attacks by the longhorn beetle have reduced the tree population. Conversion (clearing) of frankincense woodlands to agriculture is also a major threat.

 

Frankincense is used in perfumery and aromatherapy. It is also an ingredient that is sometimes used in skincare. The essential oil is obtained by steam distillation of the dry resin. Some of the smell of the frankincense smoke are products of pyrolysis.

 

Frankincense is used in many Christian churches including the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox and Catholic churches. According to the gospel of Matthew 2:11, gold, frankincense, and myrrh were among the gifts to Jesus by the biblical magi "from out of the East." The Judaic, Christian and Islamic faiths have all used frankincense mixed with oils to anoint newborn infants, initiates, and members entering into new phases of their spiritual lives.

 

Conversely, the growth of Christianity depressed the market for frankincense during the 4th century AD. Desertification made the caravan routes across the Rub' al Khali or "Empty Quarter" of the Arabian Peninsula more difficult. Additionally, increased raiding by the nomadic Parthians in the Near East caused the frankincense trade to dry up after A.D. 300.

 

Traditional medicine[edit]

 

Frankincense resin is edible and is used in traditional medicines in Asia for digestion and healthy skin. For internal consumption, it is recommended that frankincense be translucent, with no black or brown impurities. It is often light yellow with a (very) slight greenish tint. It is often chewed like gum, but it is stickier.

 

In Ayurvedic medicine Indian frankincense (Boswellia serrata), commonly referred to as "dhoop," has been used for hundreds of years for treating arthritis, healing wounds, strengthening the female hormone system and purifying the air. The use of frankincense in Ayurveda is called "dhoopan". In Indian culture, it is suggested that burning frankincense daily in the house brings good health.

 

The essential oil of frankincense is produced by steam distillation of the tree resin. The oil's chemical components are 75% monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, monoterpenoles, sesquiterpenols, and ketones. It has a good balsamic sweet fragrance, while the Indian frankincense oil has a very fresh smell. Contrary to recent claims, steam or hydro distilled frankincense oil does not contain any boswellic acid as these components (triterpenoids) are non-volatile and too large to come over in the steam distillation process. The chemistry of the essential oil is mainly monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes with small amounts of diterpenoid components being the upper limit in terms of molecular weight.

 

Olibanum is characterized by a balsamic-spicy, slightly lemon, fragrance of incense, with a conifer-like undertone. It is used in the perfume, cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries.

 

These are some of the chemical compounds present in frankincense -

"acid resin (56%), soluble in alcohol and having the formula C20H32O4"

gum (similar to gum arabic) 30–36%

3-acetyl-beta-boswellic acid (Boswellia sacra)

alpha-boswellic acid (Boswellia sacra)

4-O-methyl-glucuronic acid (Boswellia sacra)

incensole acetate

phellandrene

Coin Street [side of the Sticky Mango restaurant] Waterloo - London

 

Copy:

Anthony Michael Bourdain was an American celebrity chef, author, and travel documentarian who starred in programs focusing on the exploration of international culture, cuisine, and the human condition

The durian (/ˈdjʊriən/) is the fruit of several tree species belonging to the genus Durio. The name 'durian' is derived from the Malay-Indonesian languages word for duri or "spike", a reference to the numerous spike protuberances of the fruit, together with the noun-building suffix -an. There are 30 recognised Durio species, at least nine of which produce edible fruit. Durio zibethinus is the only species available in the international market: other species are sold in their local regions.

 

Regarded by many people in southeast Asia as the "king of fruits", the durian is distinctive for its large size, strong odour, and formidable thorn-covered husk. The fruit can grow as large as 30 centimetres long and 15 centimetres in diameter, and it typically weighs one to three kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale yellow to red, depending on the species.

 

The edible flesh emits a distinctive odour that is strong and penetrating even when the husk is intact. Some people regard the durian as having a pleasantly sweet fragrance; others find the aroma overpowering and revolting. The smell evokes reactions from deep appreciation to intense disgust, and has been described variously as rotten onions, turpentine, and raw sewage. The persistence of its odour has led to the fruit's banishment from certain hotels and public transportation in Southeast Asia.

 

The durian, native to Southeast Asia, has been known to the Western world for about 600 years. The nineteenth-century British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace described its flesh as "a rich custard highly flavoured with almonds". The flesh can be consumed at various stages of ripeness, and it is used to flavour a wide variety of savoury and sweet edibles in Southeast Asian cuisines. The seeds can also be eaten when cooked.

 

There are hundreds of durian cultivars; many consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

 

TAXONOMY

The genus Durio is placed by some taxonomists in the family Bombacaceae, or by others in a broadly defined Malvaceae that includes Bombacaceae, and by others in a smaller family of just seven genera Durionaceae.

 

DESCRIPTION

Durian trees are large, growing to 25–50 metres in height depending on the species. The leaves are evergreen, elliptic to oblong and 10–18 centimetres long. The flowers are produced in three to thirty clusters together on large branches and directly on the trunk with each flower having a calyx (sepals) and five (rarely four or six) petals. Durian trees have one or two flowering and fruiting periods per year, although the timing varies depending on the species, cultivars, and localities. A typical durian tree can bear fruit after four or five years. The durian fruit can hang from any branch and matures roughly three months after pollination. The fruit can grow up to 30 centimetres long and 15 centimetres (6 in) in diameter, and typically weighs one to three kilograms. Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale-yellow to red, depending on the species. Among the thirty known species of Durio, nine of them have been identified as producing edible fruits: D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. grandiflorus, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. macrantha, D. oxleyanus, and D. testudinarum. There are many species for which the fruit has never been collected or properly examined, however, so other species with edible fruit may exist. The durian is somewhat similar in appearance to the jackfruit, an unrelated species.

 

The name durian comes from the Malay word duri (thorn) together with the suffix -an (for building a noun in Malay). D. zibethinus is the only species commercially cultivated on a large scale and available outside of its native region. Since this species is open-pollinated, it shows considerable diversity in fruit colour and odour, size of flesh and seed, and tree phenology. In the species name, zibethinus refers to the Indian civet, Viverra zibetha. There is disagreement regarding whether this name, bestowed by Linnaeus, refers to civets being so fond of the durian that the fruit was used as bait to entrap them, or to the durian smelling like the civet.

 

Durian flowers are large and feathery with copious nectar, and give off a heavy, sour, and buttery odour. These features are typical of flowers pollinated by certain species of bats that eat nectar and pollen. According to research conducted in Malaysia in the 1970s, durians were pollinated almost exclusively by cave fruit bats (Eonycteris spelaea); however, a 1996 study indicated two species, D. grandiflorus and D. oblongus, were pollinated by spiderhunters (Nectariniidae) and another species, D. kutejensis, was pollinated by giant honey bees and birds as well as bats.

 

CULTIVARS

Over the centuries, numerous durian cultivars, propagated by vegetative clones, have arisen in southeast Asia. They used to be grown with mixed results from seeds of trees bearing superior quality fruit, but now are propagated by layering, marcotting, or more commonly, by grafting, including bud, veneer, wedge, whip or U-grafting onto seedlings of randomly selected rootstocks. Different cultivars may be distinguished to some extent by variations in the fruit shape, such as the shape of the spines. Durian consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

 

Most cultivars have a common name and a code number starting with "D". For example, some popular clones are Kop (D99 Thai: กบ – "frog" [kòp]), Chanee (D123, Thai: ชะนี – gibbon [tɕʰániː]), Berserah or Green Durian or Tuan Mek Hijau (D145 Thai: ทุเรียนเขียว – Green Durian [tʰúriːən kʰǐow]), Kan Yao (D158, Thai: ก้านยาว – Long Stem [kâːn jaːw]), Mon Thong (D159, Thai: หมอนทอง – Golden Pillow [mɔ̌ːn tʰɔːŋ]), Kradum Thong (Thai: กระดุมทอง – Golden Button [kràdum tʰɔːŋ]), and with no common name, D24 and D169. Each cultivar has a distinct taste and odour. More than 200 cultivars of D. zibethinus exist in Thailand.

 

Mon thong is the most commercially sought after for its thick, full-bodied creamy and mild sweet tasting flesh with relatively moderate smell emitted and smaller seeds, while Chanee is the best in terms of its resistance to infection by Phytophthora palmivora. Kan Yao is somewhat less common, but prized for its longer window of time when it is both sweet and odorless at the same time. Among all the cultivars in Thailand, five are currently in large-scale commercial cultivation: Chanee, Mon Thong, Kan Yao, Ruang, and Kradum. There are more than 100 registered cultivars since 1920's in Malaysia and up to 193 cultivar by 1992, and many superior cultivars have been identified through competitions held at the annual Malaysian Agriculture, Horticulture, and Agrotourism Show. In Vietnam, the same process has been achieved through competitions held by the Southern Fruit Research Institute. A recently popular variety is, Cat Mountain King or Musang King.

 

By 2007, Songpol Somsri, a Thai government scientist, had crossbred more than ninety varieties of durian to create Chantaburi No. 1, a cultivar without the characteristic odour. Another hybrid, Chantaburi No. 3, develops the odour about three days after the fruit is picked, which enables an odourless transport yet satisfies consumers who prefer the pungent odour. On 22 May 2012, two other cultivars from Thailand that also lack the usual odour, Long Laplae and Lin Laplae, were presented to the public by Yothin Samutkhiri, governor of Uttaradit province from where these cultivars were developed locally, while he announced the dates for the yearly durian fair of Laplae District, and the name giver to both cultivars.

 

Popular cultivars in Malaysia and Singapore (Singapore imports most of its durians from Malaysia hence the varieties are similar although there may be slight variation in the names) include "D24" which is a popular variety known for its bitter sweet taste; "XO" which has a pale color, thick flesh with a tinge of alcoholic fermentation; "Chook Kiok" (Cantonese meaning: bamboo leg) which has a distinctive yellowish core in the inner stem and "Musang King" ( Musang is the Malay word for civet cat) which is usually the priciest of all cultivars. Musang King has bright yellow flesh and is almost like a more potent or enhanced version of the D24. This particular variety should be consumed last since it tends to make other durians taste bland in comparison.

 

CULTIVATION AND AVAIBILITY

The durian is native to Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia.[8] There is some debate as to whether the durian is native to the Philippines, particularly the Davao region in the island of Mindanao, or was introduced. The durian is grown in other areas with a similar climate; it is strictly tropical and stops growing when mean daily temperatures drop below 22 °C.

 

The centre of ecological diversity for durians is the island of Borneo, where the fruit of the edible species of Durio including D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. oxleyanus and D. testudinarum is sold in local markets. In Brunei, D. zibethinus is not grown because consumers prefer other species such as D. graveolens, D. kutejensis and D. oxleyanus. These species are commonly distributed in Brunei, and together with other species like D. testudinarum and D. dulcis, represent rich genetic diversity.

 

Although the durian is not native to Thailand, the country is currently one of the major exporters of durians, growing 781,000 tonnes of the world's total harvest of 1,400,000 tonnes in 1999, 111,000 tonnes of which it exported to Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore and Canada. Malaysia and Indonesia follow, both producing about 265,000 tonnes each. Of this, Malaysia exported 35,000 tonnes in 1999. Chantaburi in Thailand each year holds the World Durian Festival in early May. This single province is responsible for half of the durian production of Thailand. In the Philippines, the centre of durian production is the Davao Region. The Kadayawan Festival is an annual celebration featuring the durian in Davao City. Other places where durian farms are located include Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, India, the West Indies, Florida, Hawaii, Papua New Guinea, the Polynesian Islands, Madagascar, southern China (Hainan Island), northern Australia, and Singapore.

 

Durian was introduced into Australia in the early 1960s and clonal material was first introduced in 1975. Over thirty clones of D. zibethinus and six Durio species have been subsequently introduced into Australia. China is the major importer, purchasing 65,000 tonnes in 1999, followed by Singapore with 40,000 tonnes and Taiwan with 5,000 tonnes. In the same year, the United States imported 2,000 tonnes, mostly frozen, and the European Community imported 500 tonnes.

 

The durian is a seasonal fruit, unlike some other non-seasonal tropical fruits such as the papaya, which are available throughout the year. In Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, the season for durians is typically from June to August, which coincides with that of the mangosteen. Prices of durians are relatively high as compared with other fruits. For example, in Singapore, the strong demand for high quality cultivars such as the D24, Sultan, and Mao Shan Wang has resulted in typical retail prices of between S$8 to S$15 (US$5 to US$10) per kilogram of whole fruit. With an average weight of about 1.5 kilograms, a durian fruit would therefore cost about S$12 to S$22 (US$8 to US$15). The edible portion of the fruit, known as the aril and usually referred to as the "flesh" or "pulp", only accounts for about 15–30% of the mass of the entire fruit. Many consumers in Singapore are nevertheless quite willing to spend up to around S$75 (US$50) on a single purchase of about half a dozen of the favoured fruit to be shared by family members.

 

In-season durians can be found in mainstream Japanese supermarkets, while in the West they are sold mainly by Asian markets.

 

FLAVOUR AND ODOUR

The unusual flavour and odour of the fruit have prompted many people to express diverse and passionate views ranging from deep appreciation to intense disgust. Writing in 1856, the British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace provided a much-quoted description of the flavour of the durian:

 

The five cells are silky-white within, and are filled with a mass of firm, cream-coloured pulp, containing about three seeds each. This pulp is the edible part, and its consistence and flavour are indescribable. A rich custard highly flavoured with almonds gives the best general idea of it, but there are occasional wafts of flavour that call to mind cream-cheese, onion-sauce, sherry-wine, and other incongruous dishes. Then there is a rich glutinous smoothness in the pulp which nothing else possesses, but which adds to its delicacy. It is neither acidic nor sweet nor juicy; yet it wants neither of these qualities, for it is in itself perfect. It produces no nausea or other bad effect, and the more you eat of it the less you feel inclined to stop. In fact, to eat Durians is a new sensation worth a voyage to the East to experience. ... as producing a food of the most exquisite flavour it is unsurpassed.

 

Wallace described himself as being at first reluctant to try it because of the aroma, "but in Borneo I found a ripe fruit on the ground, and, eating it out of doors, I at once became a confirmed Durian eater." He cited one traveller from 1599: "it is of such an excellent taste that it surpasses in flavour all other fruits of the world, according to those who have tasted it." He cites another writer: "To those not used to it, it seems at first to smell like rotten onions, but immediately after they have tasted it they prefer it to all other food. The natives give it honourable titles, exalt it, and make verses on it." Despite having tried many foods that are arguably more eccentric, Andrew Zimmern, host of Bizarre Foods, was unable to finish a durian upon sampling it, due to his intolerance of its strong taste.

 

While Wallace cautions that "the smell of the ripe fruit is certainly at first disagreeable", later descriptions by westerners are more graphic. Novelist Anthony Burgess writes that eating durian is "like eating sweet raspberry blancmange in the lavatory". Chef Andrew Zimmern compares the taste to "completely rotten, mushy onions". Anthony Bourdain, a lover of durian, relates his encounter with the fruit thus: "Its taste can only be described as...indescribable, something you will either love or despise. ...Your breath will smell as if you'd been French-kissing your dead grandmother." Likewise, fellow chef Jamie Oliver has also expressed admiration for the fruit on his first sampling. Travel and food writer Richard Sterling says:

 

... its odor is best described as pig-shit, turpentine and onions, garnished with a gym sock. It can be smelled from yards away. Despite its great local popularity, the raw fruit is forbidden from some establishments such as hotels, subways and airports, including public transportation in Southeast Asia.

 

Other comparisons have been made with the civet, sewage, stale vomit, skunk spray and used surgical swabs. The wide range of descriptions for the odour of durian may have a great deal to do with the variability of durian odour itself. Durians from different species or clones can have significantly different aromas; for example, red durian (D. dulcis) has a deep caramel flavour with a turpentine odour while red-fleshed durian (D. graveolens) emits a fragrance of roasted almonds. Among the varieties of D. zibethinus, Thai varieties are sweeter in flavour and less odorous than Malay ones. The degree of ripeness has an effect on the flavour as well. Three scientific analyses of the composition of durian aroma – from 1972, 1980, and 1995 – each found a mix of volatile compounds including esters, ketones, and different sulphur compounds, with no agreement on which may be primarily responsible for the distinctive odour. People in South East Asia with frequent exposures to durian are able to easily distinguish its sweet-like ketones and esters scent from rotten or putrescine odours which are from volatile amines and fatty acids. Developmental or genetic differences in olfactory perception and mapping within the brain ( for e.g. anterior piriform cortex to the orbitofrontal cortex) could possibly explain why some individuals are unable to differentiate these smells and find this fruit noxious.

 

This strong odour can be detected half a mile away by animals, thus luring them. In addition, the fruit is extremely appetising to a variety of animals, including squirrels, mouse deer, pigs, orangutan, elephants, and even carnivorous tigers. While some of these animals eat the fruit and dispose of the seed under the parent plant, others swallow the seed with the fruit and then transport it some distance before excreting, with the seed being dispersed as a result. The thorny, armoured covering of the fruit discourages smaller animals; larger animals are more likely to transport the seeds far from the parent tree.

 

RIPENESS AND SELECTION

According to Larousse Gastronomique, the durian fruit is ready to eat when its husk begins to crack. However, the ideal stage of ripeness to be enjoyed varies from region to region in Southeast Asia and by species. Some species grow so tall that they can only be collected once they have fallen to the ground, whereas most cultivars of D. zibethinus are nearly always cut from the tree and allowed to ripen while waiting to be sold. Some people in southern Thailand prefer their durians relatively young when the clusters of fruit within the shell are still crisp in texture and mild in flavour. For some people in northern Thailand, the preference is for the fruit to be soft and aromatic. In Malaysia and Singapore, most consumers prefer the fruit to be as ripe and pungent in aroma as possible and may even risk allowing the fruit to continue ripening after its husk has already cracked open. In this state, the flesh becomes richly creamy, slightly alcoholic, the aroma pronounced and the flavour highly complex.

 

The various preferences regarding ripeness among consumers make it hard to issue general statements about choosing a "good" durian. A durian that falls off the tree continues to ripen for two to four days, but after five or six days most would consider it overripe and unpalatable. The usual advice for a durian consumer choosing a whole fruit in the market is to examine the quality of the stem or stalk which loses moisture as it ages: a big, solid stem is a sign of freshness. Reportedly, unscrupulous merchants wrap, paint, or remove the stalks altogether. Due to the popularity of Kan Yao, street vendors may sometimes sell a lesser variety with a long stem to unsuspecting customers. Another frequent piece of advice is to shake the fruit and listen for the sound of the seeds moving within, indicating the durian is very ripe and the pulp has dried out a bit.

 

HISTORY

The durian has been known and consumed in Southeast Asia since prehistoric times, but has only been known to the western world for about 600 years. The earliest native reference to durian is the several bas relief panels of 9th-century Borobudur depicting durian as one of fruit offering for Javanese king, and also as one of the fruits sold in marketplace.

 

The earliest known European reference to the durian is the record of Niccolò Da Conti, who travelled to southeastern Asia in the 15th century. Translated from the Latin in which Poggio Bracciolini recorded Da Conti's travels: "They (people of Sumatra) have a green fruit which they call durian, as big as a watermelon. Inside there are five things like elongated oranges, and resembling thick butter, with a combination of flavours." The Portuguese physician Garcia de Orta described durians in Colóquios dos simples e drogas da India published in 1563. In 1741, Herbarium Amboinense by the German botanist Georg Eberhard Rumphius was published, providing the most detailed and accurate account of durians for over a century. The genus Durio has a complex taxonomy that has seen the subtraction and addition of many species since it was created by Rumphius. During the early stages of its taxonomical study, there was some confusion between durian and the soursop (Annona muricata), for both of these species had thorny green fruit. It is also interesting to note the Malay name for the soursop is durian Belanda, meaning Dutch durian. In the 18th century, Johann Anton Weinmann considered the durian to belong to Castaneae as its fruit was similar to the horse chestnut.

 

D. zibethinus was introduced into Ceylon by the Portuguese in the 16th century and was reintroduced many times later. It has been planted in the Americas but confined to botanical gardens. The first seedlings were sent from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, to Auguste Saint-Arroman of Dominica in 1884.

 

In southeastern Asia, the durian has been cultivated for centuries at the village level, probably since the late 18th century, and commercially since the mid-20th century. In My Tropic Isle, Australian author and naturalist Edmund James Banfield tells how, in the early 20th century, a friend in Singapore sent him a durian seed, which he planted and cared for on his tropical island off the north coast of Queensland.

 

In 1949, the British botanist E. J. H. Corner published The Durian Theory, or the Origin of the Modern Tree. His theory was that endozoochory (the enticement of animals to transport seeds in their stomach) arose before any other method of seed dispersal, and that primitive ancestors of Durio species were the earliest practitioners of that dispersal method, in particular red durian (D. dulcis) exemplifying the primitive fruit of flowering plants.

 

Since the early 1990s, the domestic and international demand for durian in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region has increased significantly, partly due to the increasing affluence of Asia.

 

USES

CULINARY

Durian fruit is used to flavour a wide variety of sweet edibles such as traditional Malay candy, ice kacang, dodol, lempuk, rose biscuits, and, with a touch of modern innovation, ice cream, milkshakes, mooncakes, Yule logs, and cappuccino. Es durian (durian ice cream) is a popular dessert in Indonesia, sold at street side stall in Indonesian cities, especially in Java. Pulut Durian or ketan durian is glutinous rice steamed with coconut milk and served with ripened durian. In Sabah, red durian is fried with onions and chilli and served as a side dish. Red-fleshed durian is traditionally added to sayur, an Indonesian soup made from freshwater fish. Ikan brengkes is fish cooked in a durian-based sauce, traditional in Sumatra. Traditionally Bollen pastry, specialty of Bandung is filled with banana and cheese. Today Bollen durian is also available, it is pastry filled with durian. Dried durian flesh can be made into kripik durian (durian chips).

 

Tempoyak refers to fermented durian, usually made from lower quality durian that is unsuitable for direct consumption. Tempoyak can be eaten either cooked or uncooked, is normally eaten with rice, and can also be used for making curry. Sambal Tempoyak is a Sumatran dish made from the fermented durian fruit, coconut milk, and a collection of spicy ingredients known as sambal.

 

In Thailand, durian is often eaten fresh with sweet sticky rice, and blocks of durian paste are sold in the markets, though much of the paste is adulterated with pumpkin. Unripe durians may be cooked as a vegetable, except in the Philippines, where all uses are sweet rather than savoury. Malaysians make both sugared and salted preserves from durian. When durian is minced with salt, onions and vinegar, it is called boder. The durian seeds, which are the size of chestnuts, can be eaten whether they are boiled, roasted or fried in coconut oil, with a texture that is similar to taro or yam, but stickier. In Java, the seeds are sliced thin and cooked with sugar as a confection. Uncooked durian seeds are toxic due to cyclopropene fatty acids and should not be ingested.

 

Young leaves and shoots of the durian are occasionally cooked as greens. Sometimes the ash of the burned rind is added to special cakes. The petals of durian flowers are eaten in the North Sumatra province of Indonesia, while in the Moluccas islands the husk of the durian fruit is used as fuel to smoke fish. The nectar and pollen of the durian flower that honeybees collect is an important honey source, but the characteristics of the honey are unknown.

 

NUTRITIONS AND FOLK MEDICINE

Durian fruit contains a high amount of sugar, vitamin C, potassium, and the serotonergic amino acid tryptophan, and is a good source of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. It is recommended as a good source of raw fats by several raw food advocates, while others classify it as a high-glycemic food, recommending to minimise its consumption.

 

In Malaysia, a decoction of the leaves and roots used to be prescribed as an antipyretic. The leaf juice is applied on the head of a fever patient. The most complete description of the medicinal use of the durian as remedies for fevers is a Malay prescription, collected by Burkill and Haniff in 1930. It instructs the reader to boil the roots of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis with the roots of Durio zibethinus, Nephelium longan, Nephelium mutabile and Artocarpus integrifolia, and drink the decoction or use it as a poultice.

 

In the 1920s, Durian Fruit Products, Inc., of New York City launched a product called "Dur-India" as a health food supplement, selling at US$9 for a dozen bottles, each containing 63 tablets. The tablets allegedly contained durian and a species of the genus Allium from India and vitamin E. The company promoted the supplement saying that it provides "more concentrated healthful energy in food form than any other product the world affords".

 

CUSTOMS AND BELIEFS

Southeast Asian traditional beliefs, as well as traditional Chinese medicine, consider the durian fruit to have warming properties liable to cause excessive sweating. The traditional method to counteract this is to pour water into the empty shell of the fruit after the pulp has been consumed and drink it. An alternative method is to eat the durian in accompaniment with mangosteen, which is considered to have cooling properties. Pregnant women or people with high blood pressure are traditionally advised not to consume durian.

 

Another common local belief is that the durian is harmful when eaten with coffee or alcoholic beverages. The latter belief can be traced back at least to the 18th century when Rumphius stated that one should not drink alcohol after eating durians as it will cause indigestion and bad breath. In 1929, J. D. Gimlette wrote in his Malay Poisons and Charm Cures that the durian fruit must not be eaten with brandy. In 1981, J. R. Croft wrote in his Bombacaceae: In Handbooks of the Flora of Papua New Guinea that "a feeling of morbidity" often follows the consumption of alcohol too soon after eating durian. Several medical investigations on the validity of this belief have been conducted with varying conclusions, though a study by the University of Tsukuba finds the fruit's high sulphur content inhibits the activity of aldehyde dehydrogenase, causing a 70% reduction of the ability to clear toxins from the body.

 

The Javanese believe durian to have aphrodisiac qualities, and impose a set of rules on what may or may not be consumed with it or shortly thereafter. A saying in Indonesian, durian jatuh sarung naik, meaning "the durian falls and the sarong comes up", refers to this belief. The warnings against the supposed lecherous quality of this fruit soon spread to the West – the Swedenborgian philosopher Herman Vetterling commented on so-called "erotic properties" of the durian in the early 20th century.

 

A durian falling on a person's head can cause serious injuries because it is heavy, armed with sharp thorns, and can fall from a significant height. Wearing a hardhat is recommended when collecting the fruit. Alfred Russel Wallace writes that death rarely ensues from it, because the copious effusion of blood prevents the inflammation which might otherwise take place. A common saying is that a durian has eyes and can see where it is falling because the fruit allegedly never falls during daylight hours when people may be hurt. A saying in Indonesian, ketiban durian runtuh, which translates to "getting a durian avalanche", is the equivalent of the English phrase "windfall gain". Nevertheless, signs warning people not to linger under durian trees are found in Indonesia. Strong nylon or woven rope nettings are often strung between durian trees in orchards, serving a threefold purpose: the nets aid in the collection of the mature fruits, deter ground-level scavengers, and most importantly, prevent the durians from falling onto people.

 

A naturally spineless variety of durian growing wild in Davao, Philippines, was discovered in the 1960s; fruits borne from these seeds also lacked spines. Since the bases of the scales develop into spines as the fruit matures, sometimes spineless durians are produced artificially by scraping scales off immature fruits. In Malaysia, a spinesless durian clone D172 is registered by Agriculture Department on 17 June 1989. It was called "Durian Botak" (Bald Durian). In Indonesia, Ir Sumeru Ashari, head of Durian Research Centre, Universitas Brawijaya reported spineless durian from Kasembon, Malang. Another cultivar is from Lombok, Nusa Tenggara Barat, Indonesia.

 

Animals such as Sumatran elephants are known to consume durians. Curiously, the carnivorous Sumatran tiger is also known to consume durian occasionally. The strong odour of the fallen fruits in the jungle probably attracts the tiger to inspect the fruit and lick it.

 

CULTURAL INFLUENCE

The durian is commonly known as the "King of the Fruits", a label that can be attributed to its formidable look and overpowering odour. In its native southeastern Asia, the durian is an everyday food and portrayed in the local media in accordance with the cultural perception it has in the region. The durian symbolised the subjective nature of ugliness and beauty in Hong Kong director Fruit Chan's 2000 film Durian Durian (榴槤飄飄, lau lin piu piu), and was a nickname for the reckless but lovable protagonist of the eponymous Singaporean TV comedy Durian King played by Adrian Pang. Likewise, the oddly shaped Esplanade building in Singapore is often called "The Durian" by locals, and "The Big Durian" is the nickname of Jakarta, Indonesia.

 

One of the names Thailand contributed to the list of storm names for Western North Pacific tropical cyclones was 'Durian', which was retired after the second storm of this name in 2006. Being a fruit much loved by a variety of wild beasts, the durian sometimes signifies the long-forgotten animalistic aspect of humans, as in the legend of Orang Mawas, the Malaysian version of Bigfoot, and Orang Pendek, its Sumatran version, both of which have been claimed to feast on durians.

 

Frozen whole durians are shipped from Thailand to Asian markets and Chinatowns in Western countries.

 

WIKIPEDIA

My 6 year old boy has type 1 diabetes and this drop of insulin keeps his blood sugar levels in a normal(ish) range.

Just thought i'd raise a bit of awareness of how type 1 affects peoples daily life, thanks for looking.

 

Type 1 diabetes is caused by a problem with the immune system. It is not linked to lifestyle factors and changes to diet or exercise habits can not prevent or cure it. Only research will find the cure.

 

A normal, healthy body will keep glucose levels within a range of 4 – 7 mmol/L (the measurement used in the UK) by using a range of hormones. Insulin is the hormone that transfers glucose from the bloodstream into the cells to be used for energy. In type 1 diabetes blood-glucose levels go outside of the normal range because there is either insufficient or a total absence of insulin.

 

When blood-glucose levels are too high the body will attempt to remove the excess glucose from the blood in any way it can.

 

This leads to a chain of events including the following:

 

The body will try to get rid of the excess glucose by pushing it out in the urine – resulting in the need to go to the toilet more often

Because more urine is being passed there is increased thirst

Because the cells aren’t getting the energy they need there will be tiredness and eventually exhaustion

Because the body still needs energy it will start to break down fat stores so there will be weight loss

If this continues for any length of time there will be a build up of ketones which are toxic to the body and can cause the breath to smell ketotic (like pear drops), stomach pains and ultimately loss of consciousness

Stem cell therapy is an advanced and beneficial treatment for diabetes, numerous patients with diabetes have shown noticeable improvement, long-time remission and were able to enjoy a high quality of life after the therapy in SQ1 stem cell medical center.

 

The Beneficial Effects Of Stem Cell Therapy On Diabetes

 

Stem cell therapy can improve pancreatic islets function, hepatic glucose, and lipid metabolism while lowering blood sugar.

 

Clinical research and applications have shown that through stem cell therapy, about 65% of the patients are no longer dependent on insulin or oral drug to treat diabetes, and over 90% of patients reported reduced a dosage of insulin or oral drug or changed from insulin injection to oral drug. Collectively, stem cell therapy greatly diminished the onset and development of diabetes complications.

 

The era of clinical stem cell therapy for diabetes has come!

 

Reduction of diabetes medication intake

 

Maintenance of normal blood sugar levels

 

Restoration of the sensitivity of peripheral tissue to insulin and increase of insulin levels

 

Prevention and improvement of related diabetic foot symptoms

 

Reduction of hepatocyte lipid-related lesions

 

Improvement in the condition of the arterial walls and reduction of hyperinsulinemia and atherosclerosis

 

Prevention or reversion of certain complications of diabetes, such as erectile dysfunction and vision loss

 

Diabetes-Related Diseases That Stem Cell Therapy Can Treat

 

Type 1 diabetes

Type 2 diabetes

Stem cell therapy also can treat complications of diabetes including:

 

Diabetic foot: foot infections, ulcers, and deep layer tissue damage.

 

Diabetic retinopathy: it can cause blurred vision, decreased vision, and even blindness.

 

Diabetic cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases: it can cause a cerebral infarction, cerebral hemorrhage, vascular dementia, etc.

 

Diabetic neuropathy: it can cause numbness and tingle in hands and feet, orthostatic hypotension, vomiting, urinary, and fecal incontinence, etc.

 

Diabetic nephropathy(chronic renal failure): it can cause foamy urine, edema, and renal failure.

 

Capillary and macrovascular complications: diabetes can lead to narrowing of lower extremity arteries, coronary heart disease, stroke, etc.

 

In 2019, the famous US news magazine “TIME” listed diabetes treatment with stem cell therapy as one of the top 10 innovative medical inventions that will change the future. In the year 2021, Mass General Brigham selected the ground-breaking “stem cell therapies for Diabetes” as one of the Top 12 “Disruptive gene and cell therapy technologies”.

 

Learn More About Diabetes

 

Diabetes is a metabolic disorder disease characterized by hyperglycemia(high blood sugar), it is also the third-largest non-infectious chronic disease following cancer and cardiovascular disease. There are approximately 537 million diabetes patients in the world by the year 2021.

Clinically, there are three main types of diabetes: type 1, type 2, and gestational diabetes (diabetes while pregnant). The major incidence populations of type 1 diabetes are adolescents and children, it is recognized by the destruction of pancreatic β-cells which leads to insufficient insulin secretion and hyperglycemia. Type 2 diabetes is caused by genetic, and environmental factors and their interactions. Usually, it is characterized by malfunction of pancreatic β-cell and insulin resistance in cells. Gestational diabetes develops in pregnant women who have never had diabetes before. If you have gestational diabetes, your baby could be at higher risk for health problems. Your baby is more likely to have obesity as a child or teen, and more likely to develop type 2 diabetes later in life too.

 

Risk Factors For Type 2 Diabetes

 

Type 2 diabetes is believed to have a strong genetic link, meaning that it tends to run in families. If you have a parent, brother, or sister who has it, your chances rise.

 

You should ask your doctor about a diabetes test when you have any of the following risk factors:

 

High blood pressure.

 

High blood triglyceride (fat) levels. It's too high if it's over 150 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL).

 

Low "good" cholesterol level. It's too low if it's less than 40 mg/dL.

 

Gestational diabetes or giving birth to a baby weighing more than 9 pounds.

 

Prediabetes. That means your blood sugar level is above normal, but you don't have the disease yet.

 

Heart disease.

 

High-fat and carbohydrate diet. This can sometimes be the result of food insecurity when you don’t have access to enough healthy food.

 

High alcohol intake.

 

Sedentary lifestyle.

 

Obesity or being overweight.

 

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).

 

Being of ethnicity that’s at higher risk: African Americans, Native Americans, Hispanic Americans, and Asian Americans are more likely to get type 2 diabetes than non-Hispanic whites.

 

You're over 45 years of age. Older age is a significant risk factor for type 2 diabetes. The risk of type 2 diabetes begins to rise significantly around age 45 and rises considerably after age 65.

 

You’ve had an organ transplant. After an organ transplant, you need to take drugs for the rest of your life so your body doesn’t reject the donor. organ. These drugs help organ transplants succeed, but many of them, such as tacrolimus (Astagraf, Prograf) or steroids, can cause diabetes or make it worse.

 

Clinical Symptoms Of Diabetes

 

Polyuia

 

Dry mouth and increased thirst

 

Strong appetite

 

Unexplained Weight loss

 

Fatigue

 

Obesity

 

Presence of glucose in urine

 

Presence of ketones in urine

 

Abnormal high amount of glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) in serum

 

Glycated serum protein abnormality

 

Abnormal amount of insulin and c-peptide in serum

 

Dyslipidemia(unhealthy level of blood fat)

 

Stem Cell Therapy For Diabetes At SQ1

Stem cells used in the treatment of diabetes

SQ1 provides access to treatment that utilizes mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) isolated from the cord blood, placenta, and/or peripheral blood of patients and embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs), into pancreatic endocrine lineages.

 

A combination MSCs and hESCs delivered via the intravenous route for 30 minutes at a delivery rate of 40 mL/hour to a final dose of 1 × 106 cells/kg of the patient's body weight.

 

The combination of cells and other treatment details are individual to the patient and is determined by genetically-programmed factors, individual to every human.

 

The therapeutic scope and efficacy of stem cell therapy for diabetes

A double infusion of hESCs+MSCs through either the intravenous route or the dorsal pancreatic artery route is performed for patients with type 2 Diabetes. The therapy exhibited term efficacy (7-9 months) in patients with type 2 diabetes for less than 10 years (the longest period of remission registered to date is 10 years and the shortest – 2 years) and a BMI <23 kg/m2 and improvement in hyperglycemia, reported blood glucose levels within the normal range.

 

Our results revealed reductions in the HbA1c and FBG levels during the first 3 months after administration in patients with type 2 Diabetes, deemed clinically significant because the reduction was maintained in a normal range at 12 months after administration.

 

Factors determining the efficacy of the treatment and remission term are individual and genetically driven.

 

Advantages Of Stem Cell Treatment For Diabetes

 

Traditional therapeutic methods, such as daily medication or injections of exogenous insulin, are the most common diabetes treatment, but their use is frequently associated with failure of glucose metabolism control, which leads to hyperglycemia episodes.

 

Stem cell therapy is a promising strategy for avoiding the problems associated with daily insulin injections. To maintain glucose homeostasis, this therapeutic method is expected to produce, store, and supply insulin. To completely cure diabetes, cell-based therapies aim to produce functional insulin-secreting cells.

 

Stem cell therapy

Conventional treatment

Curative Treatment or diseases management

The stem cell is a curative treatment for diabetes. Stem cell therapy is designed to rejuvenate the pancreas which helps the body to produce insulin naturally.

 

If given in the early stages, the dependency on medication and insulin can be reversed.

 

Insulin and medicine are used to control the amount of glucose in your blood. It is not a cure treatment it is used to control diabetes.

 

Slowly and gradually, people on medication move to insulin dependency.

 

Dosage

Stem cell therapy reduces the dosages of medication and insulin as the body starts producing insulin naturally.

 

If given in the early stages, the dependency on medication and insulin can be reversed.

 

Stem cell experts based on your current level of disease and other comorbidities will design a customized protocol and decide, the number of stem cells, source of stem cells, and cycles of stem cell therapy.

 

Patients who are on medication will observe a slow and gradual increase in dosages of medication.

 

At a certain point in time when medication is not able to manage the sugar levels, external insulin support will be required.

 

Patients who are on insulin support need to take insulin daily before consumption of food. The doses of insulin also increase with time.

 

Side-effects

No Side-effects as stem cells are our cells that are used to treat the disease and regenerate the pancreas to regain proper functioning.

 

Some of the common side-effects that medication and insulin can develop are upset stomach, skin rash or itching, weight gain, tiredness, and if not taken properly can even low blood sugar extremely.

 

Convenience

Stem cell therapy is performed by stem cell specialists which requires a special laboratory to process the stem cells and the medical set up to extract and inject the stem cell.

 

The therapy is going to be injection-based and needs to be performed in a hospital.

 

Medication that can be easily consumed.

 

Repeated and multiple small pricks for insulin injection for the patients who are currently on insulin.

 

The strict discipline to take medication or insulin on time as prescribed.

 

Longevity

Long-term effect and possibly curative treatment which removes the dependency on insulin and medication if taken in the early stage.

 

If taken in the later stages it reduces your dependency on medication and insulin. In a few cases, a repeat cycle may also be required.

 

Short-term effects.

 

Need to take insulin and medication daily as prescribed and the medication and effectiveness are for a few hours or a day.

 

The patient needs to take the medication and insulin lifetime.

 

End-stage

Stem cells are the basic building block of our body. The main functionality of stem cells is to regenerate the damaged cells and make copies of their own cells to repair the damaged cells.

 

Your own body is healing you and deferring the need for a transplant.

 

A pancreas transplant is the only treatment in the end stage.

 

There is a high probability that the kidney might also be damaged due to diabetes so in some cases both kidney and pancreas transplants would be required.

 

The availability of the donor and the waiting period can be a big reason for worry.

 

How Can Stem Cell Therapy For Diabetes Work

 

Stem cells were able to lower blood sugar levels and restore islet function in the following three ways:

 

Improvement of insulin resistance: stem cells will secret a variety of cytokines to improve the insulin resistance conditions in peripheral tissues and promote sugar intake by cells, thus reversing the hyperglycemia status in the body.

 

Promotion of regeneration of pancreatic islet β cells: Stem cells can reduce the progressive lesion to pancreatic islets from metabolic disorders in diabetes, at the same time can regenerate pancreatic β cells. In addition, stem cells can secret various cytokines to improve the microenvironment and induce the transformation of islet α cells to β cells. This process enables the in-situ regeneration of β cells and leads to the stabilization of blood sugar level.

  

Immunomodulation effect: stem cells can inhibit the T cell-mediated immune response against newly generated β cells and promote the repair and regeneration of pancreatic islets.

 

SQ1 Stem Cell Services

During the whole treatment process, we’ll provide complete and first-class medical services to you. And to ensure your treatment effect, you can consult your doctor any time after the treatment.

www.sq1stemcell.com/stem-cell-treatment-for-diabetes/

   

The Orchidaceae are a diverse and widespread family of flowering plants, with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant, commonly known as the orchid family.

 

Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering plants. The Orchidaceae have about 28,000 currently accepted species, distributed in about 763 genera. The determination of which family is larger is still under debate, because verified data on the members of such enormous families are continually in flux. Regardless, the number of orchid species is nearly equal to the number of bony fishes, more than twice the number of bird species, and about four times the number of mammal species.

 

The family encompasses about 6–11% of all seed plants. The largest genera are Bulbophyllum (2,000 species), Epidendrum (1,500 species), Dendrobium (1,400 species) and Pleurothallis (1,000 species). It also includes Vanilla (the genus of the vanilla plant), the type genus Orchis, and many commonly cultivated plants such as Phalaenopsis and Cattleya. Moreover, since the introduction of tropical species into cultivation in the 19th century, horticulturists have produced more than 100,000 hybrids and cultivars.

 

DESCRIPTION

Orchids are easily distinguished from other plants, as they share some very evident derived characteristics or synapomorphies. Among these are: bilateral symmetry of the flower (zygomorphism), many resupinate flowers, a nearly always highly modified petal (labellum), fused stamens and carpels, and extremely small seeds.

 

STEM AND ROOTS

All orchids are perennial herbs that lack any permanent woody structure. They can grow according to two patterns:

 

Monopodial: The stem grows from a single bud, leaves are added from the apex each year, and the stem grows longer accordingly. The stem of orchids with a monopodial growth can reach several metres in length, as in Vanda and Vanilla.

Sympodial: Sympodial orchids have a front (the newest growth) and a back (the oldest growth). The plant produces a series of adjacent shoots, which grow to a certain size, bloom and then stop growing and are replaced. Sympodial orchids grow laterally rather than vertically, following the surface of their support. The growth continues by development of new leads, with their own leaves and roots, sprouting from or next to those of the previous year, as in Cattleya. While a new lead is developing, the rhizome may start its growth again from a so-called 'eye', an undeveloped bud, thereby branching. Sympodial orchids may have visible pseudobulbs joined by a rhizome, which creeps along the top or just beneath the soil.

 

Terrestrial orchids may be rhizomatous or form corms or tubers. The root caps of terrestrial orchids are smooth and white.

 

Some sympodial terrestrial orchids, such as Orchis and Ophrys, have two subterranean tuberous roots. One is used as a food reserve for wintry periods, and provides for the development of the other one, from which visible growth develops.

 

In warm and constantly humid climates, many terrestrial orchids do not need pseudobulbs.

 

Epiphytic orchids, those that grow upon a support, have modified aerial roots that can sometimes be a few meters long. In the older parts of the roots, a modified spongy epidermis, called a velamen, has the function of absorbing humidity. It is made of dead cells and can have a silvery-grey, white or brown appearance. In some orchids, the velamen includes spongy and fibrous bodies near the passage cells, called tilosomes.

 

The cells of the root epidermis grow at a right angle to the axis of the root to allow them to get a firm grasp on their support. Nutrients for epiphytic orchids mainly come from mineral dust, organic detritus, animal droppings and other substances collecting among on their supporting surfaces.

 

The base of the stem of sympodial epiphytes, or in some species essentially the entire stem, may be thickened to form a pseudobulb that contains nutrients and water for drier periods.

 

The pseudobulb has a smooth surface with lengthwise grooves, and can have different shapes, often conical or oblong. Its size is very variable; in some small species of Bulbophyllum, it is no longer than two millimeters, while in the largest orchid in the world, Grammatophyllum speciosum (giant orchid), it can reach three meters. Some Dendrobium species have long, canelike pseudobulbs with short, rounded leaves over the whole length; some other orchids have hidden or extremely small pseudobulbs, completely included inside the leaves.

 

With ageing, the pseudobulb sheds its leaves and becomes dormant. At this stage, it is often called a backbulb. Backbulbs still hold nutrition for the plant, but then a pseudobulb usually takes over, exploiting the last reserves accumulated in the backbulb, which eventually dies off, too. A pseudobulb typically lives for about five years. Orchids without noticeable pseudobulbs are also said to have growths, an individual component of a sympodial plant.

 

LEAVES

Like most monocots, orchids generally have simple leaves with parallel veins, although some Vanilloideae have reticulate venation. Leaves may be ovate, lanceolate, or orbiculate, and very variable in size on the individual plant. Their characteristics are often diagnostic. They are normally alternate on the stem, often folded lengthwise along the centre ("plicate"), and have no stipules. Orchid leaves often have siliceous bodies called stegmata in the vascular bundle sheaths (not present in the Orchidoideae) and are fibrous.

 

The structure of the leaves corresponds to the specific habitat of the plant. Species that typically bask in sunlight, or grow on sites which can be occasionally very dry, have thick, leathery leaves and the laminae are covered by a waxy cuticle to retain their necessary water supply. Shade-loving species, on the other hand, have long, thin leaves.

 

The leaves of most orchids are perennial, that is, they live for several years, while others, especially those with plicate leaves as in Catasetum, shed them annually and develop new leaves together with new pseudobulbs.

 

The leaves of some orchids are considered ornamental. The leaves of the Macodes sanderiana, a semiterrestrial or rock-hugging ("lithophyte") orchid, show a sparkling silver and gold veining on a light green background. The cordate leaves of Psychopsis limminghei are light brownish-green with maroon-puce markings, created by flower pigments. The attractive mottle of the leaves of lady's slippers from tropical and subtropical Asia (Paphiopedilum), is caused by uneven distribution of chlorophyll. Also, Phalaenopsis schilleriana is a pastel pink orchid with leaves spotted dark green and light green. The jewel orchid (Ludisia discolor) is grown more for its colorful leaves than its white flowers.

 

Some orchids, such as Dendrophylax lindenii (ghost orchid), Aphyllorchis and Taeniophyllum depend on their green roots for photosynthesis and lack normally developed leaves, as do all of the heterotrophic species.

 

Orchids of the genus Corallorhiza (coralroot orchids) lack leaves altogether and instead wrap their roots around the roots of mature trees and use specialized fungi to harvest sugars.

 

FLOWERS

The Orchidaceae are well known for the many structural variations in their flowers.

 

Some orchids have single flowers, but most have a racemose inflorescence, sometimes with a large number of flowers. The flowering stem can be basal, that is, produced from the base of the tuber, like in Cymbidium, apical, meaning it grows from the apex of the main stem, like in Cattleya, or axillary, from the leaf axil, as in Vanda.

 

As an apomorphy of the clade, orchid flowers are primitively zygomorphic (bilaterally symmetrical), although in some genera, such as Mormodes, Ludisia, and Macodes, this kind of symmetry may be difficult to notice.

 

The orchid flower, like most flowers of monocots, has two whorls of sterile elements. The outer whorl has three sepals and the inner whorl has three petals. The sepals are usually very similar to the petals (thus called tepals, 1), but may be completely distinct.

 

The medial petal, called the labellum or lip (6), which is always modified and enlarged, is actually the upper medial petal; however, as the flower develops, the inferior ovary or the pedicel usually rotates 180°, so that the labellum arrives at the lower part of the flower, thus becoming suitable to form a platform for pollinators. This characteristic, called resupination, occurs primitively in the family and is considered apomorphic, a derived characteristic all Orchidaceae share. The torsion of the ovary is very evident from the longitudinal section shown (below right). Some orchids have secondarily lost this resupination, e.g. Epidendrum secundum.

 

The normal form of the sepals can be found in Cattleya, where they form a triangle. In Paphiopedilum (Venus slippers), the lower two sepals are fused into a synsepal, while the lip has taken the form of a slipper. In Masdevallia, all the sepals are fused.

 

Orchid flowers with abnormal numbers of petals or lips are called peloric. Peloria is a genetic trait, but its expression is environmentally influenced and may appear random.

 

Orchid flowers primitively had three stamens, but this situation is now limited to the genus Neuwiedia. Apostasia and the Cypripedioideae have two stamens, the central one being sterile and reduced to a staminode. All of the other orchids, the clade called Monandria, retain only the central stamen, the others being reduced to staminodes (4). The filaments of the stamens are always adnate (fused) to the style to form cylindrical structure called the gynostemium or column (2). In the primitive Apostasioideae, this fusion is only partial; in the Vanilloideae, it is more deep; in Orchidoideae and Epidendroideae, it is total. The stigma (9) is very asymmetrical, as all of its lobes are bent towards the centre of the flower and lie on the bottom of the column.

 

Pollen is released as single grains, like in most other plants, in the Apostasioideae, Cypripedioideae, and Vanilloideae. In the other subfamilies, which comprise the great majority of orchids, the anther (3) carries two pollinia.

 

A pollinium is a waxy mass of pollen grains held together by the glue-like alkaloid viscin, containing both cellulosic strands and mucopolysaccharides. Each pollinium is connected to a filament which can take the form of a caudicle, as in Dactylorhiza or Habenaria, or a stipe, as in Vanda. Caudicles or stipes hold the pollinia to the viscidium, a sticky pad which sticks the pollinia to the body of pollinators.

 

At the upper edge of the stigma of single-anthered orchids, in front of the anther cap, is the rostellum (5), a slender extension involved in the complex pollination mechanism.

 

As mentioned, the ovary is always inferior (located behind the flower). It is three-carpelate and one or, more rarely, three-partitioned, with parietal placentation (axile in the Apostasioideae).

 

In 2011, Bulbophyllum nocturnum was discovered to flower nocturnally.

 

POLLINATION

The complex mechanisms that orchids have evolved to achieve cross-pollination were investigated by Charles Darwin and described in Fertilisation of Orchids (1862). Orchids have developed highly specialized pollination systems, thus the chances of being pollinated are often scarce, so orchid flowers usually remain receptive for very long periods, rendering unpollinated flowers long-lasting in cultivation. Most orchids deliver pollen in a single mass. Each time pollination succeeds, thousands of ovules can be fertilized.

 

Pollinators are often visually attracted by the shape and colours of the labellum. However, some Bulbophyllum species attract male fruit flies (Bactrocera and Zeugodacus spp.) solely via a floral chemical which simultaneously acts as a floral reward (e.g. methyl eugenol, raspberry ketone, or zingerone) to perform pollination. The flowers may produce attractive odours. Although absent in most species, nectar may be produced in a spur of the labellum (8 in the illustration above), or on the point of the sepals, or in the septa of the ovary, the most typical position amongst the Asparagales.

 

In orchids that produce pollinia, pollination happens as some variant of the following sequence: when the pollinator enters into the flower, it touches a viscidium, which promptly sticks to its body, generally on the head or abdomen. While leaving the flower, it pulls the pollinium out of the anther, as it is connected to the viscidium by the caudicle or stipe. The caudicle then bends and the pollinium is moved forwards and downwards. When the pollinator enters another flower of the same species, the pollinium has taken such position that it will stick to the stigma of the second flower, just below the rostellum, pollinating it. The possessors of orchids may be able to reproduce the process with a pencil, small paintbrush, or other similar device.

 

Some orchids mainly or totally rely on self-pollination, especially in colder regions where pollinators are particularly rare. The caudicles may dry up if the flower has not been visited by any pollinator, and the pollinia then fall directly on the stigma. Otherwise, the anther may rotate and then enter the stigma cavity of the flower (as in Holcoglossum amesianum).

 

The slipper orchid Paphiopedilum parishii reproduces by self-fertilization. This occurs when the anther changes from a solid to a liquid state and directly contacts the stigma surface without the aid of any pollinating agent or floral assembly.

 

The labellum of the Cypripedioideae is poke bonnet-shaped, and has the function of trapping visiting insects. The only exit leads to the anthers that deposit pollen on the visitor.

 

In some extremely specialized orchids, such as the Eurasian genus Ophrys, the labellum is adapted to have a colour, shape, and odour which attracts male insects via mimicry of a receptive female. Pollination happens as the insect attempts to mate with flowers.

 

Many neotropical orchids are pollinated by male orchid bees, which visit the flowers to gather volatile chemicals they require to synthesize pheromonal attractants. Males of such species as Euglossa imperialis or Eulaema meriana have been observed to leave their territories periodically to forage for aromatic compounds, such as cineole, to synthesize pheromone for attracting and mating with females. Each type of orchid places the pollinia on a different body part of a different species of bee, so as to enforce proper cross-pollination.

 

A rare achlorophyllous saprophytic orchid growing entirely underground in Australia, Rhizanthella slateri, is never exposed to light, and depends on ants and other terrestrial insects to pollinate it.

 

Catasetum, a genus discussed briefly by Darwin, actually launches its viscid pollinia with explosive force when an insect touches a seta, knocking the pollinator off the flower.

 

After pollination, the sepals and petals fade and wilt, but they usually remain attached to the ovary.

 

ASEXUAL REPRODUCTION

Some species, such as Phalaenopsis, Dendrobium, and Vanda, produce offshoots or plantlets formed from one of the nodes along the stem, through the accumulation of growth hormones at that point. These shoots are known as keiki.

 

FRUITS AND SEEDS

The ovary typically develops into a capsule that is dehiscent by three or six longitudinal slits, while remaining closed at both ends.

 

The seeds are generally almost microscopic and very numerous, in some species over a million per capsule. After ripening, they blow off like dust particles or spores. They lack endosperm and must enter symbiotic relationships with various mycorrhizal basidiomyceteous fungi that provide them the necessary nutrients to germinate, so all orchid species are mycoheterotrophic during germination and reliant upon fungi to complete their lifecycles.

 

As the chance for a seed to meet a suitable fungus is very small, only a minute fraction of all the seeds released grow into adult plants. In cultivation, germination typically takes weeks.

 

Horticultural techniques have been devised for germinating orchid seeds on an artificial nutrient medium, eliminating the requirement of the fungus for germination and greatly aiding the propagation of ornamental orchids. The usual medium for the sowing of orchids in artificial conditions is agar gel combined with a carbohydrate energy source. The carbohydrate source can be combinations of discrete sugars or can be derived from other sources such as banana, pineapple, peach, or even tomato puree or coconut water. After the preparation of the agar medium, it is poured into test tubes or jars which are then autoclaved (or cooked in a pressure cooker) to sterilize the medium. After cooking, the medium begins to gel as it cools.

 

TAXONOMY

The taxonomy of this family is in constant flux, as new studies continue to clarify the relationships between species and groups of species, allowing more taxa at several ranks to be recognized. The Orchidaceae is currently placed in the order Asparagales by the APG III system of 2009.

 

Five subfamilies are recognised. The cladogram below was made according to the APG system of 1998. It represents the view that most botanists had held up to that time. It was supported by morphological studies, but never received strong support in molecular phylogenetic studies.

 

Apostasioideae: 2 genera and 16 species, south-western Asia

Cypripedioideae: 5 genera and 130 species, from the temperate regions of the world, as well as tropical America and tropical Asia

 

Monandrae

Vanilloideae: 15 genera and 180 species, humid tropical and subtropical regions, eastern North America 

Epidendroideae: more than 500 genera and more or less 20,000 species, cosmopolitan

Orchidoideae: 208 genera and 3,630 species, cosmopolitan

 

In 2015, a phylogenetic study showed strong statistical support for the following topology of the orchid tree, using 9 kb of plastid and nuclear DNA from 7 genes, a topology that was confirmed by a phylogenomic study in the same year. 

 

Apostasioideae

Vanilloideae

Cypripedioideae 

Epidendroideae

Orchidoideae

 

EVOLUTION

A study in the scientific journal Nature has hypothesised that the origin of orchids goes back much longer than originally expected. An extinct species of stingless bee, Proplebeia dominicana, was found trapped in Miocene amber from about 15-20 million years ago. The bee was carrying pollen of a previously unknown orchid taxon, Meliorchis caribea, on its wings. This find is the first evidence of fossilised orchids to date and shows insects were active pollinators of orchids then. This extinct orchid, M. caribea, has been placed within the extant tribe Cranichideae, subtribe Goodyerinae (subfamily Orchidoideae). An even older orchid species, Succinanthera baltica, was described from the Eocene Baltic amber by Poinar & Rasmussen (2017).

 

Genetic sequencing indicates orchids may have arisen earlier, 76 to 84 million years ago during the Late Cretaceous. According to Mark W. Chase et al. (2001), the overall biogeography and phylogenetic patterns of Orchidaceae show they are even older and may go back roughly 100 million years.

 

Using the molecular clock method, it was possible to determine the age of the major branches of the orchid family. This also confirmed that the subfamily Vanilloideae is a branch at the basal dichotomy of the monandrous orchids, and must have evolved very early in the evolution of the family. Since this subfamily occurs worldwide in tropical and subtropical regions, from tropical America to tropical Asia, New Guinea and West Africa, and the continents began to split about 100 million years ago, significant biotic exchange must have occurred after this split (since the age of Vanilla is estimated at 60 to 70 million years).

 

Genome duplication occurred prior to the divergence of this taxon.

 

GENERA

There are around 800 genera of orchids.

 

ETYOLOGY

The type genus (i.e. the genus after which the family is named) is Orchis. The genus name comes from the Ancient Greek ὄρχις (órkhis), literally meaning "testicle", because of the shape of the twin tubers in some species of Orchis. The term "orchid" was introduced in 1845 by John Lindley in School Botany, as a shortened form of Orchidaceae.

 

In Middle English, the name bollockwort was used for some orchids, based on "bollock" meaning testicle and "wort" meaning plant.

 

DISTRIBUTION

Orchidaceae are cosmopolitan, occurring in almost every habitat apart from glaciers. The world's richest diversity of orchid genera and species is found in the tropics, but they are also found above the Arctic Circle, in southern Patagonia, and two species of Nematoceras on Macquarie Island at 54° south.

 

The following list gives a rough overview of their distribution:

 

Oceania: 50 to 70 genera

North America: 20 to 26 genera

tropical America: 212 to 250 genera

tropical Asia: 260 to 300 genera

tropical Africa: 230 to 270 genera

Europe and temperate Asia: 40 to 60 genera 

 

ECOLOGY

A majority of orchids are perennial epiphytes, which grow anchored to trees or shrubs in the tropics and subtropics. Species such as Angraecum sororium are lithophytes, growing on rocks or very rocky soil. Other orchids (including the majority of temperate Orchidaceae) are terrestrial and can be found in habitat areas such as grasslands or forest.

 

Some orchids, such as Neottia and Corallorhiza, lack chlorophyll, so are unable to photosynthesise. Instead, these species obtain energy and nutrients by parasitising soil fungi through the formation of orchid mycorrhizae. The fungi involved include those that form ectomycorrhizas with trees and other woody plants, parasites such as Armillaria, and saprotrophs. These orchids are known as myco-heterotrophs, but were formerly (incorrectly) described as saprophytes as it was believed they gained their nutrition by breaking down organic matter. While only a few species are achlorophyllous holoparasites, all orchids are myco-heterotrophic during germination and seedling growth, and even photosynthetic adult plants may continue to obtain carbon from their mycorrhizal fungi.

 

USES

PERFUMERY

The scent of orchids is frequently analysed by perfumers (using headspace technology and gas-liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry) to identify potential fragrance chemicals.

 

HORTICULTURE

The other important use of orchids is their cultivation for the enjoyment of the flowers. Most cultivated orchids are tropical or subtropical, but quite a few that grow in colder climates can be found on the market. Temperate species available at nurseries include Ophrys apifera (bee orchid), Gymnadenia conopsea (fragrant orchid), Anacamptis pyramidalis (pyramidal orchid) and Dactylorhiza fuchsii (common spotted orchid).

 

Orchids of all types have also often been sought by collectors of both species and hybrids. Many hundreds of societies and clubs worldwide have been established. These can be small, local clubs, or larger, national organisations such as the American Orchid Society. Both serve to encourage cultivation and collection of orchids, but some go further by concentrating on conservation or research.

 

The term "botanical orchid" loosely denotes those small-flowered, tropical orchids belonging to several genera that do not fit into the "florist" orchid category. A few of these genera contain enormous numbers of species. Some, such as Pleurothallis and Bulbophyllum, contain approximately 1700 and 2000 species, respectively, and are often extremely vegetatively diverse. The primary use of the term is among orchid hobbyists wishing to describe unusual species they grow, though it is also used to distinguish naturally occurring orchid species from horticulturally created hybrids.

 

New orchids are registered with the International Orchid Register, maintained by the Royal Horticultural Society.

 

USE AS FOOD

The dried seed pods of one orchid genus, Vanilla (especially Vanilla planifolia), are commercially important as a flavouring in baking, for perfume manufacture and aromatherapy.

 

The underground tubers of terrestrial orchids [mainly Orchis mascula (early purple orchid)] are ground to a powder and used for cooking, such as in the hot beverage salep or in the Turkish frozen treat dondurma. The name salep has been claimed to come from the Arabic expression ḥasyu al-tha‘lab, "fox testicles", but it appears more likely the name comes directly from the Arabic name saḥlab. The similarity in appearance to testes naturally accounts for salep being considered an aphrodisiac.

 

The dried leaves of Jumellea fragrans are used to flavour rum on Reunion Island.

 

Some saprophytic orchid species of the group Gastrodia produce potato-like tubers and were consumed as food by native peoples in Australia and can be successfully cultivated, notably Gastrodia sesamoides. Wild stands of these plants can still be found in the same areas as early Aboriginal settlements, such as Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park in Australia. Aboriginal peoples located the plants in habitat by observing where bandicoots had scratched in search of the tubers after detecting the plants underground by scent.

 

CULTURAL SYMBOLISM

Orchids have many associations with symbolic values. For example, the orchid is the City Flower of Shaoxing, China. Cattleya mossiae is the national Venezuelan flower, while Cattleya trianae is the national flower of Colombia. Vanda 'Miss Joaquim' is the national flower of Singapore, Guarianthe skinneri is the national flower of Costa Rica and Rhyncholaelia digbyana is the national flower of Honduras. Prosthechea cochleata is the national flower of Belize, where it is known as the black orchid. Lycaste skinneri has a white variety (alba) that is the national flower of Guatemala, commonly known as Monja Blanca (White Nun). Panama's national flower is the Holy Ghost orchid (Peristeria elata), or 'the flor del Espiritu Santo'. Rhynchostylis retusa is the state flower of the Indian state of Assam where it is known as Kopou Phul.

 

Orchids native to the Mediterranean are depicted on the Ara Pacis in Rome, until now the only known instance of orchids in ancient art, and the earliest in European art.

 

WIKIPEDIA

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- Công suất lên tới 600 xét nghiệm/h

 

- Lưu trữ tối đa 1000 kết quả

 

Các thông số : Glucose/Protein/pH/Blood/Specific Gravity/Ketone/Leukocytes/ Nitrite/ Urobilinogen/ Bilirubin/Ascorbic acid/Creatinine/ Microalbumin/Ca

   

Thông tin chi tiết về cấu hình, thông số kĩ thuật và báo giá, xin liên hệ

Công ty TNHH Việt Phan

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Trụ sở: 106B6 Kim Liên - Đống Đa - Hà Nội

Điện thoại: 043 8521387

Email: vietphanmedi(at)yahoo.com

Website: vietphan.com.vn

  

Công ty Việt Phan là nhà cung cấp độc quyền các hãng tại Việt Nam:

•Boule Swelab - Thuỵ Điển : Máy xét nghiệm huyết học tự động 16, 18, 20, 22 thông số và hoá chất

•Boule – EXIGO - Thụy Điển: Máy xét nghiệm huyết học 17 thông số cho thú y

•Seppim SAS – ELITech - Pháp: Hoá chất sinh hóa.

•Vital Scientific – ELITech – Hà Lan: Máy xét nghiệm sinh hoá tự động, bán tự động

•Wescor Inc – ELItech - Mỹ: Máy nhuộm Gram, nhuộm tiêu bản, thẩm thấu kế

•Event Medical – Mỹ : Máy thở người lớn, trẻ em.

•Mediana – Hàn Quốc: Monitor theo dõi bệnh nhân, monitor sản khoa,

•Doppler tim thai, máy sốc tim, máy đo độ bão hoà ôxi trong máu ...

•Medigate – Hàn Quốc : Máy điện tim

•Proway – Trung Quốc : Kính hiển vi thường qui, số hoá.

•Dino-lite – Đài Loan : Kính hiển vi kĩ thuật số USB

•ACEM - Italy: Đèn phẫu thuật ánh sáng lạnh công nghệ LED

•RIMSA – Italy : Đèn phẫu thuật ánh sáng lạnh công nghệ LED

•Sonoscanner – Pháp : Siêu âm 4D và siêu âm xách tay 4D

•Deltronix – Brazil: Dao mổ điện cao tần

•Gigante – Brazil : Lồng ấp trẻ sơ sinh, lồng sưởi trẻ sơ sinh.

•Medicors – Hungary: Lồng ấp trẻ sơ sinh, lồng sưởi trẻ sơ sinh.

•Chen Kuang Industries – Đài Loan: Giường bệnh nhân chỉnh điện.

•Sigma – Care Đài Loan: Giường bệnh nhân chỉnh điện.

•Shanghai Medical Equipments Works (SMEW) : Bàn mổ chỉnh cơ, điện

•Schaerer Medical – Thuỵ sĩ: Bàn mổ chỉnh điện cao cấp

•Schiller – Thụy Sĩ: monitor bệnh nhân, monitor trung tâm hỗ trợ 64 máy trạm.

•RGB - Tây Ban Nha : Monitor theo dõi bệnh nhân đa thông số

•DFI Diagnostics – Hàn Quốc: Máy xét nghiệm nước tiểu 11 thông số 300-700 test/h

•Tridema Engineering – Italy : máy xét nghiệm đông máu tự động.

•Dynamic & Evolution – Đài Loan: Bàn mổ điện thủy lực

•Convergent Technologies – Đức : Máy điện giải tự động, máy xét nghiệm huyết học 24 thông số 5 thành phần bạch cầu, máy đo tốc độ máu lắng.

•Kirsch-Offenburg - Đức : Tủ lạnh trữ thuốc / hoá chất.

•Han Shin – Hàn Quốc : Tủ trữ máu nhiệt độ thấp.

•Bistos –Hàn Quốc: Monitor theo dõi bệnh nhân, doppler tim thai, đèn vàng da ...

•Neurosoft – Nga : máy điện cơ, điện não và phần mềm.

•TSE - Đức : máy thí nghiệm động vật.

•Ugo Basile - Italy : máy thí nghiệm trên động vật.

•Techno-Gaz – Italy : máy tiệt trùng.

•MGE – Anh : Máy hút dịch phòng mổ.

•STS – Hàn Qu ốc : vật liệu đinh nẹp vít cho phẫu thuật loãng xương, cột sống.

•Hettich - Đức : máy ly tâm lạnh.

•Econet - Đức : máy đo độ loãng xương, monitor theo dõi bệnh nhân.

•Hanshin Medical – Hàn Quốc : tủ trữ máu nhiệt độ thấp.

 

Bên cạnh đó Việt Phan là bạn hàng cung cấp các thiết bị của các hãng:

•Quantel Medical – Pháp: Kính hiển vi, máy siêu âm mắt, máy laser Yag

•Kontron Medical - Pháp: Máy siêu âm tim, máy siêu âm màu, đen trắng xách tay

•Sonix-Canada : Máy siêu âm màu 3D, 4D, đen trắng xe đẩy

•GE Healthcare –Mỹ: Máy siêu âm màu đa năng 4D, đen trắng xe đẩy

•Daito – Nhật: Máy rửa phim tự động 60test/giờ

•Stephal Xray - Pháp: Máy X quang thường quy, X quang cao tần

•Ecomed – Hàn Quốc: Máy X quang thường quy, X quang cao tần

•Medex - Bỉ : Máy X quang kỹ thuật số hoàn toàn (DR)

•Anios – Pháp : Bồn rửa tay vô trùng, máy phun sương khử trùng

•Medifa - Đức: Bàn mổ đa năng thuỷ lực

•Penlon – Anh: Máy thở và máy gây mê kèm thở

•Novin – Masimo - Mỹ: Monitor theo dõi bệnh nhân 5, 7 thông số

•OMRON – Nhật : Monitor theo dõi bệnh nhân 5, 7 thông số

•Pentax – Nhật: Hệ thống nội soi dạ dày tá tràng, tử cung

•Gemmy - Đài Loan: Thiết bị hấp , sấy vô trùng

•Centronic - Đức: Hoá chất xét nghiệm sinh hoá

•Jonhson &Jonhson: Tủ sấy tiệt trùng nhiệt độ thấp

•Olympus - Nhật Bản: Kính hiển vi, thiết bị nội soi dạ dày tá tràng

•Shimadzu – NhậtBản: Hệ thống X quang thường quy, cao tần

•ITO – Nhật Bản : Thiết bị vật lý trị liệu

•Alcon – Nhật: Thiết bị chuyên khoa mắt, máy mổ phaco

•Sysmex- Nhật: Máy đông máu, máy huyết học

•Nihonkoden – Nhật: Máy huyết học, máy điện não, điện tim

•Drager - Đức: Máy gây mê kèm thở, hệ thống khí y tế

•Newport – Mỹ: Máy thở cao cấp

•Memmert - Đức: Tủ ấm, tủ sấy

•Karl Storz - Đức: Thiết bị mổ nội soi ổ bụng, trực tràng, tiết niệu

•Bio Rad-Nhật – Pháp: Dàn Elisa

•Meiji – Techno – Nhật: Kính hiển vi số

•Infinium Medical- Mỹ: Monitor theo dõi bệnh nhân đa thông số, monitor trung tâm, hệ thống gây mê kèm thở.

•Và một số hãng thiết bị y tế khác nổi tiếng trên thế giới

     

081220 {yymmdd}