Abstract

Anacardium occidentale L. is a tree native to Brazil, which is rich in phenolic lipids. Nowadays, the cashew bark (Cashew Nut Shell Liquid) has received great attention in the pharmaceutical industry, due to its economy, abundance and important chemical compounds. Net of cashew nut shell is classified according to the method of production of: (1) net of the shell of natural cashew nut (60-65% anacardic acid; 15-20% cardol and 10% of cardanol) and (2) liquid from the technical cashew nut shell (60-65% of cardanol, 15-20% cardol and 10% of polymeric material). This work aims to report the pharmacological properties of liquids from cashew nut shells. Results suggest that both liquids have antifungal, antibacterial, antiparasitic, anti-tumor, antiulcerogenic, molluscicides, antimutagenic and antioxidant activities. Natural cashew nut liquid is non-genotoxic, whereas technical liquid is genotoxic in prokaryotes and eukaryotes, although there is no evidence of their mutagenic effects on eukaryotic cells. In conclusion, the excellent antioxidant and non-mutagenic activities of cashew nut shell liquid (CNSL)  provide opportunities for CNSL in the cosmetic and/or pharmaceutical industries, but continuous study is needed to allow safe and efficacious preparations.   Key words: Cashew liquid, cosmetics, pharmacological, pharmaceutical, preparation.

Highlights

  • The Anacardiaceae family has 76 genera divided into five tribes (Anacardiaceae, Dobineae, Rhoeae, Semecarpeae and Spondiadeae) covering about 600 species (Correia et al, 2006)

  • Anacardium occidentale L. is a tree native to Brazil, which is rich in phenolic lipids

  • Net of cashew nut shell is classified according to the method of production of: (1) net of the shell of natural cashew nut (60-65% anacardic acid; 15-20% cardol and 10% of cardanol) and (2) liquid from the technical cashew nut shell (60-65% of cardanol, 15-20% cardol and 10% of polymeric material)

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Summary

Introduction

The Anacardiaceae family has 76 genera divided into five tribes (Anacardiaceae, Dobineae, Rhoeae, Semecarpeae and Spondiadeae) covering about 600 species (Correia et al, 2006). It represents 90% of cashew production in Brazil This species is evident for its antioxidant (Melo-Cavalcante et al, 2003), antigenotoxic, antimutagenic (Melo-Cavalcante et al, 2011), antiulcerogenic (Behravan et al, 2012), anti-inflammatory (Olajide et al, 2004), antibacterial, antifungal and larvicides (Behravan et al, 2012) activities. It is a tree rich in anthocyanins, carotenoids, ascorbic acid (vitamin C), flavonoids and other polyphenols as well as mineral components. The bark and leaves are used in folk medicine (Konan and Bacchi, 2007)

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