A Powerful Antibacterial Extract Derived from Garcinia Mangostana Fruit

Garcinia mangostana, commonly known as “mangosteen”, is a tropical evergreen tree. Its fruit is in an emerging category of novel functional foods sometimes called “superfruits” presumed to have a combination of appealing subjective characteristics, such as taste, fragrance and visual qualities, nutrient richness, antioxidant strength and potential impact for lowering risk of human diseases. The fruit of mangosteen is sweet, tangy, juicy and somewhat fi brous with an inedible, deep reddish purple-colored rind (pericarp) when ripe. Mangosteen is the plant mostly found in Asia, especially in Thailand. The pericarp of the mangosteen fruit is one of the richest sources of bioactive polyphenols, including xanthones. With over 200 xanthones identifi ed in nature, so far 43 xanthones have been identifi ed in the mangosteen fruit which have remarkable biological activity. Therefore, the pericarp of this plant has been used as a medicinal drug in Southeast Asia for the treatment of skin infections, diarrhea, chronic wounds, heart therapy and infl ammation. Conventional extraction methods are soxhlet or maceration processes. They operate at elevated temperatures and are time consuming. Other emerging extraction techniques use ultrasounds and seem to be more economical. In any case the quality of the extract from the pericarp is the key to achieve an effective activity. A high xanthone content, especially in alpha-mangostin, and the purity of the extract are important to guarantee a highly potent mangosteen extract.