Mangosteen

Name: Mangosteen

Other Names: Garcinia mangostana

Description: The mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana) is a tropical evergreen tree, believed to have originated in the Sunda Islands and the Moluccas. The tree grows from 7 to 25 m (20-80 ft) tall. The rind (exocarp) of the edible fruit is deep reddish purple when ripe. Botanically an aril, the fragrant edible flesh can be described as sweet and tangy, citrusy with peach flavor and texture. Mangosteen is closely related to other edible tropical fruits such as button mangosteen and lemondrop mangosteen. Botanically, it bears no relation to the mango.

Maturation of the exocarp and edible aril

The juvenile mangosteen fruit, which does not require fertilization to form (see agamospermy), first appears as pale green or almost white in the shade of the canopy. As the fruit enlarges over the next two to three months, the exocarp color deepens to darker green. During this period, the fruit increases in size until its exocarp is 6–8 centimeters in outside diameter, remaining hard until a final, abrupt ripening stage.

The subsurface chemistry of the mangosteen exocarp comprises an array of polyphenolic acids including xanthones and tannins that assure astringency to discourage infestation by insects, fungi, plant viruses, bacteria and animal predation while the fruit is immature. Color changes and softening of the exocarp are natural processes of ripening that indicates the fruit can be eaten and the seeds are finished developing.

Mangosteen produces a recalcitrant seed and must be kept moist to remain viable until germination. Mangosteen seeds are nucellar in origin and not the result of fertilization; they germinate as soon as they are removed from the fruit and die quickly if allowed to dry.

Once the developing mangosteen fruit has stopped expanding, chlorophyll synthesis slows as the next color phase begins. Initially streaked with red, the exocarp pigmentation transitions from green to red to dark purple, indicating a final ripening stage. This entire process takes place over a period of ten days as the edible quality of the fruit peaks.

The edible endocarp of the mangosteen is botanically defined as an aril with the same shape and size as a tangerine 4–6 centimeters in diameter, but is white. The circle of wedge-shaped arils contains 4–8 segments, the larger ones harboring apomictic seeds that are unpalatable unless roasted.

Often described as a subtle delicacy, the arils bear an exceptionally mild aroma, quantitatively having about 400 times fewer chemical constituents than fragrant fruits, explaining its relative mildness. Main volatile components having caramel, grass and butter notes as part of the mangosteen fragrance are hexyl acetate, hexenol and α-copaene.

On the bottom of the exocarp, raised ridges (remnants of the stigma), arranged like spokes of a wheel, correspond to the number of aril sections. Mangosteens reach fruit-bearing in as little as 5–6 years, but more typically require 8–10 years.

Nutrient content and antioxidant strength

Mangosteen is typically advertised and marketed as part of an emerging category of novel functional foods sometimes called "superfruits" presumed to have a combination of 1) appealing subjective characteristics, such as taste, fragrance and visual qualities, 2) nutrient richness, 3) antioxidant strength and 4) potential impact for lowering risk against human diseases.

The aril is the flavorful part of the fruit but when analyzed specifically for its nutrient content the mangosteen aril only meets the first criterion above, as its overall nutrient profile is absent of important content, it contains no pigmentation (correspondingly, no antioxidant phytochemicals in significant concentration) and there is no scientific evidence of aril constituents having any health properties.

Purée or juice from arils combined with exocarp phenolic extracts produces juice having purple color and astringency like the exocarp pigments, including xanthones under study for potential anti-cancer effects on mouse mammary tissue in vitro. As xanthone research has been heavily researched. Possible health benefits for humans cover over 200 conditions.

The mangosteen actually has more phytonutrients than any of the other super fruits or botanical known to man at this time. There are many scientific studies of mangosteen. Go to www.pubmed.com to check this out. The efficacy of this fruit and what traditional medicine in Southeast Asia has used since the Ming Dynasty is amazing. It's been documented from that far back. This is the only botanical with Xanthones. A double sided cellular structure that's purpose is to give an electron to a free radical thereby neutralizing the free radical. So far only 200 xanthones have been found in the world. Appx. 43 are in the mangosteen fruit, most are in the pericarp. That's what makes this fruit exceptional. The other known xanthones are not edible.
The mangosteen also contains polyphenols, proanthocyanidins and catechins, polysaccharides and sterols. Making this a super anti-oxidant fruit.

However, a possible adverse effect may occur from chronic consumption of mangosteen juice containing xanthones. A 2008 medical case report described a patient with severe acidosis possibly attributable to a year of daily use (to lose weight, dose not described) of mangosteen juice infused with xanthones, as occurs in the manufacture of many commercial mangosteen juices. The authors proposed that chronic exposure to alpha-mangostin, a xanthone, could be toxic to mitochondrial function, leading to impairment of cellular respiration and production of lactic acidosis.

Legend, geographic origins and culinary applications

There is a legend about Queen Victoria offering a reward to anyone who could deliver to her the fabled fruit.

An ultra-tropical tree, the mangosteen must be grown in consistently warm conditions, as exposure to temperatures below 40°F (4°C) will generally kill a mature plant.

Due to ongoing restrictions on imports, mangosteen is not commonly available to the public. Following export from its natural growing regions in Southeast Asia, the fresh fruit is available seasonally in some local markets like those of Chinatowns and rarely in produce sections of grocery stores in North America and Europe. Mangosteen and its related products, such as juices and nutritional supplements, are legally imported into the United States which had an import ban until 2007.

Mangosteens are readily available canned and frozen in Western countries. Without fumigation or irradiation as fresh fruit, mangosteens have historically been illegal for importation in commercial volumes into the United States due to fears that they harbor the Asian fruit fly which would endanger U.S. crops. This situation, however, officially changed on July 23, 2007 when irradiated imports from Thailand were allowed upon USDA approval of irradiation, packing and shipping techniques.

From 2006 to present, private small volume orders from fruits grown on Puerto Rico are being filled for American gourmet restaurants who serve the aril pieces as a delicacy dessert. Beginning in 2007 for the first time, fresh mangosteens are also being sold for as high as $45 per pound from specialty produce stores in New York City.

Before ripening, the mangosteen shell is fibrous and firm, but becomes soft and easy to pry open when the fruit ripens. To open a mangosteen, the shell is usually scored first with a knife; one holds the fruit in both hands, prying gently along the score with the thumbs until the rind cracks. It is then easy to pull the halves apart along the crack and remove the fruit, taking care with the purple, inky exocarp juice containing pigments that are an avid dye on skin and fabric.