Mangosteen has emerged in recent years as one of several “superfruits” that – according to the marketers and manufacturers – confer a wide range of health benefits. But what is the scientific evidence of these benefits and what is the potential of mangosteen as a cosmeceutical product?
Uses of Mangosteen
A member of the Guttiferae family, Garcinia mangostana, known widely as mangosteen (and as mangkhut in Thailand, where it is the national fruit, as well as the “queen of fruits”) is a tropical fruit native to Southeast Asia, particularly Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Thailand (J. Ethnopharmacol. 2009;121:379-82; Food Chem. Toxicol. 2008;46:3227-39). Mangosteen is botanically unrelated to mango. It has been used for centuries as a food as well as a medicine. Specifically, the pericarp (comprising the peel, rind, and hull) is used as an anti-inflammatory agent throughout the region (Food Chem. Toxicol. 2008;46:688-93). In Thai traditional medicine, the fruit hull of G. mangostana has been used to treat abscesses and cutaneous infections (J. Ethnopharmacol. 2009;121:379-82). Abdominal pain, chronic ulcers, cystitis, diarrhea, dysentery, gonorrhea, and various urinary disorders have also been treated with this tropical fruit (Food Chem. Toxicol. 2008;46:3227-39). The pericarp of mangosteen is used broadly in Ayurvedic medicine to treat inflammation and diarrhea (Phytochemistry 1988;27:1552-4), as well as cholera and dysentery (Phytochemistry 1980;19:2223-5; Food Chem. Toxicol. 2008;46:3227-39).
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Marketers make claims about the health benefits of mangosteen, but the fruit remains underresearched.
Products derived from G. mangostana are now becoming increasingly popular throughout the world, particularly in the form of liquid supplements (Phytother. Res. 2009;23:1047-65).
In recent years, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anticarcinogenic activities have been associated with mangosteen in the laboratory. Xanthones are the primary active constituents of mangosteen fruit. They are found in the whole fruit, branches, leaves, and trunk of G. mangostana. These compounds are believed to be responsible for the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antiproliferative effects against cancer cells that have been reported from in vitro and animal studies (J. Soc. Integr. Oncol. 2006;4:130-4). Notably, despite a dearth of clinical evidence for justifying such use, mangosteen products are marketed to cancer patients as dietary supplements (J. Soc. Integr. Oncol. 2006;4:130-4). Nevertheless, prenylated xanthones, including alpha-, beta-, and gamma-mangostins, garcinone E, 8-deoxygartanin, and gartanin isolated from mangosteen have been extensively investigated and are believed to exert antioxidant, antitumoral, antiallergic, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral properties (Food Chem. Toxicol. 2008;46:3227-39).
Research on Mangosteen
In 2009, Chomnawang et al. studied 17 different plant species used medicinally in Thailand for their activity against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). The disk diffusion method was used to show that several species could hinder the growth of the standard strain of S. aureus, with G. mangostana identified as the strongest inhibitor (Fitoterapia 2009;80:102-4). Previously, in 2007, Chomnawang et al. investigated the effects of Thai medicinal plants to determine if they exerted any free radical–scavenging and cytokine-reducing properties to ease the inflammation engendered by Propionibacterium acnes. The antioxidant activity of the 19 plants considered was identified through two assays: the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging assay and the nitroblue tetrazolium (NBT) dye reduction assay. G. mangostana was revealed to exhibit the strongest antioxidant properties. The authors concluded that mangosteen appears to be a viable treatment option for acne, as its extracts effectively reduced tumor necrosis factor–alpha (TNF-alpha) production, scavenged free radicals, and inhibited proinflammatory cytokine production (Fitoterapia 2007;78:401-8). In 2005, Chomnawang et al. studied the antimicrobial activities of 19 different plants used in Thai medicine in order to determine their efficacy against the primary bacteria implicated in the etiologic pathway of acne (Propionibacterium acnes and Staphylococcus epidermidis). Of the 19 species tested, 13 were found through the disk diffusion method to be capable of suppressing the growth of P. acnes; through the broth dilution method, G. mangostana – with the xanthone derivative mangostin as an active constituent – was found to exhibit the greatest antimicrobial activity, with a potent inhibitory effect against both bacteria (J. Ethnopharmacol. 2005;101:330-3).
In 2008, Chen et al. isolated the xanthones alpha- and gamma-mangostin from the fruit hull of G. mangostana, and found that both significantly inhibited nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) synthesis from lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW 264.7 (mouse leukemic monocyte macrophage) cells, with gamma-mangostin displaying stronger inhibitory properties. In addition, alpha-mangostin was found in an in vivo study to significantly suppress mice carrageenan-induced paw edema. The authors concluded that the xanthones alpha- and gamma-mangostin are bioactive constituents in G. mangostana that exhibit anti-inflammatory properties. (Food Chem. Toxicol. 2008;46:688-93).
More recently, Tewtrakul et al. investigated the anti-inflammatory activity of the fruit hull of mangosteen and its bioactive xanthones. Specifically, they tested G. mangostana extract along with alpha- and gamma-mangostin for anti-inflammatory protection against LPS-induced NO, PGE2, TNF-alpha and interleukin-4 (IL-4) releases using RAW 264.7 macrophage cells. The extract and the isolated xanthones exhibited potent inhibitory effects against NO release. The extract also demonstrated strong suppression against PGE2 release, but the xanthones exhibited modest inhibition, and only moderate impact on the release of TNF-alpha and IL-4. Alpha-mangostin and the extract dose-dependently inhibited the transcription of gene encoding inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase-2, but gamma-mangostin hindered only the transcription of iNOS. The authors concluded that their results endorse the continued use of the fruit hull of G. mangostana for the treatment of inflammatory conditions because of its inhibitory activity against the release of NO and PGE2 (J. Ethnopharmacol. 2009;121:379-82).