Durian

Durian

Durio zibethinus is the only species available in the international market. It is native to Borneo and Sumatra and is distinctive for its large size, strong odour, and thorn-covered rind. A draft genome analysis of durian indicates it has about 46,000 coding and non-coding genes. A class called methionine gamma lyases may be primarily responsible for the distinct durian odours.

About Durian in brief

Summary DurianThe durian is the fruit of several tree species belonging to the genus Durio. 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. It is native to Borneo and Sumatra and is distinctive for its large size, strong odour, and thorn-covered rind. Some people regard the durian as having a pleasantly sweet fragrance, whereas others find the aroma overpowering with an unpleasant odour. A draft genome analysis of durian indicates it has about 46,000 coding and non-coding genes, among which a class called methionine gamma lyases – which regulate the odour of organosulfur compounds – may be primarily responsible for the distinct durian odours. The fruit can grow as large as 30 centimetres long and 15 cm in diameter, and it typically weighs 1 to 3 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 flesh can be consumed at various stages of ripeness, and is used to flavour a wide variety of savoury and sweet desserts in Southeast Asian cuisines. The seeds can also be eaten when cooked. The name ‘durian’ is derived from the Malay language word dûrî, a reference to the numerous prickly thornsof the rind, together with the noun-building suffix -an.

First used around 1580, the name ‘zibethensis’ derives from the name of the civet, known for its odour and used to refer to the species of fruit that grow in Malaysia and Brunei. Durian trees are large, growing to 25–50 metres in height depending on species, and produced in three to thirty flowers. The leaves are evergreen, elliptic to elliptic and 10 18 centimetre––long. The flowers are 10 18 per cent long on the trunk, with each flower having a calyx and calyx directly on the petals. A typical durian tree can bear fruit for four or five years after pollination, and can hang from any branch and matures in roughly three months after four months. It can be found in Thailand and Malaysia, with over 300 named varieties in Thailand, and 100 in Malaysia, as of 1987. The durian trees have one or two flowering periods per year, although the timing of the timing varies on the cultivars, localities, and localities. Some taxonomists place Durio in the family Bombacaceae, or by others in a broadly defined Malvaceae. However, the first studies to examine mallow phylogeny using molecular data found that the tribe Durioneae should be placed in the subfamily Helicteroideae of an expanded MalVaceae. The 6 additional species included in Durio s. l. are now considered by some to comprise their own genus, Boschia.