Characterization of Bioactive Compounds from Garcinia mangostana L. obtained by Supercritical Fluid Carbon dioxide Process

Mangosteen fruits usually grown in Southeast Asia, have found international market in
recent years because of their growing knowledge in the pharmaceutical and food
industry. To sum up, this work highlights the importance of mangosteen pericarp which
have been traditionally used as an indigenous medicine as a rich source of health
benefits. Supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO2) extractions were carried with and
without ethanol as modifier. The use of ethanol as an entrainer in SC-CO2 increased the
overall yield and the xanthone recovery, comparing well with the Soxtec™ method.
Response surface methodology (RSM) proved to be extremely useful in predictive
modeling and optimization of extraction conditions such as pressure, temperature,
solvent to material ratio and time on the extracts yield. Analytical tools such as RPHPLC-
DAD, LC-ESI-MS and 1H, 13C NMR spectral techniques were useful in
screening quantification and identification of xanthones, phenolic acids, flavonoids and
anthocyanin compounds. A one-step enzymatic glycosylation of α-mangostin in SCCO2
was successfully employed for the synthesis of α-mangostin-D-glucoside using
amyloglucosidase. The conversion yield was optimized using central composite
rotatable design. The results on long-term stabilities of mangosteen extract in oil-inwater
(MIO/W) emulsions have shown to possess important implications for the design
of whey protein concentrate stabilized emulsions for development of functionally
bioactive compounds for health benefits. An overall result of the investigation are
highly encouraging and adds to the current knowledge in the pharmaceutical and food
industries for the possible commercial application of SC-CO2 in the extraction of
bioactive compounds from mangosteen pericarp.
There is an increasing public awareness of the health, environment safety and hazards
associated with the use of organic solvents in food processing and the possible solvent
contamination of the final products. The high cost of organic solvents and the
increasingly stringent environmental regulations together with the new requirements of
the pharmaceutical and food industries for ultra-pure and high added value products
have emphasized the need for the development of new and clean technologies for the
processing of food products. Supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO2) as a solvent has
provided an excellent alternative to chemical solvents. Over the past three decades, SCCO2
has been used for the extraction and isolation of valuable compounds from natural
products. Carbon dioxide is particularly suitable solvent for food processing
applications, because it’s moderate critical temperature (31.1 °C) and critical pressure
(7.38 MPa) enables the extraction of thermally labile food compounds in near natural
form. Additionally, it is non-toxic, environmentally acceptable and relatively
inexpensive. Compared with conventional solvents CO2 does not leave any harmful
solvent residue after extraction.
Mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana L.) belongs to the family of Guttiferae and is
named ‘‘the queen of fruits”, it is a slow-growing tropical evergreen tree mainly found
in India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand. It bears dark red to purple rounded fruits
of 5-7 cm in diameter. The edible portion of fruit (aril) is white, soft with a slightly
sour taste. The pericarp of mangosteen fruit is 6-10 mm in thickness and has been used
in Thai indigenous medicine for the treatment of skin infections, wounds and diarrhea
for many years. The major secondary metabolites of mangosteen have found to be
prenylated xanthone and oxygenated xanthones, tannin, isoflavone, flavone and other
bioactive substances. Xanthones have a variety of biological activity, for example
antioxidant, antibacterial, antifungal, antitumor, antiplatelet aggregation,
antithrombotic, prevention of oxidative damage of LDL, and inhibition of HIV-1
protease.