During the last few decades, presence of
appreciable quantity of lycopene in watermelon
has motivated the farmers/growers to
cultivate high red flesh varieties. Overall,
twelve hundred cultivars of watermelon are
produced worldwide while the four most
promising cultivars are picnic, icebox, yellow
flesh and seed less (Chalabi et al., 2006;
Helyes et al., 2009). This review article intends
to enlighten the readers regarding rich
nutritional profile of the watermelon with
special focus on lycopene and its therapeutic
aspects like prevent oxidative stress, cancer,
hypercholesterolemia, diabetes and macular
disorders.