Research on the mangosteen fruit

It’s a buzz coming across the continent, research on the mangosteen has people buzzing about the "Queen of the fruits" as it’s known in Asia, and the medical properties that it brings. People want to know where the fruit comes from (Southeast Asia), the health benefits of Mangosteen juice, and anything else they can read about it. A simple fact is that research on the mangosteen tells us there is no relation to the mango, despite popular belief. Rather it comes from a tropical evergreen found in Asia.

The tree that bares the mangosteen fruit grows as high as 24 meters and is full of reddish fruit that bares a hard outer shell. The mangosteen tree is believed to find it’s origin in the Sunda Islands or Moluccas. There are two parts to the Sunda Islands (greater and lesser). It is this tropical area that the mangosteen finds it’s roots, and is believed to still flourish there because of the ideal conditions for it’s growth.

The mangosteen is no longer just grown in Asia, it is now being grown and sold on the Hawaiian Islands. How ever the fruit is not exported to the rest of the US as there are fears that the mangosteen harbors fruit flies. Mangosteen research has led to facility located in Hawaii that works solely on creating additives and supplements from the fruit that allow it to be more easily exported to the US. Rarely can the mangosteen be found as a complete fruit in Continental US, generally it is found in a bottle, can, capsule, or frozen format.

Discovering Xanthones in Mangosteen

Part of the fuss around research on the mangosteen stems from Xanthones. A Xantone is an organic compound that was first introduced to us as an insecticide in the late 1930’s. It currently finds it’s use as a form of ovicide for coddling moth eggs, or a larvicide. Some medical activities also use Xanthone, including a test to discover urea levels in the blood stream. The organic makeup of Xanthone helps form the core of other naturally occurring compounds, one in particular is Mangostin.

This compound Mangostin brings us around in a complete circle in research on the mangosteen fruit. Right back to the Asian fruit. Mangostin is a vital compound that related to different parts of the fruit, and more than likely is what gives the fruit a reddish appearance and it’s name. Further research on Mangostin makes researchers believe that it holds great biological properties that could be beneficial in anti-bacterial, and anti-cancer products.

As time goes on research on the mangosteen will continue, and we’ll likely only uncover more health benefits about how it can help us and what it delivers to our bodies. Keep an eye on this wonder fruit, because as more becomes known it could be a miracle supplement of the future.