Medicinal value ofGarcinia –biochemical evidence

Abstract

The genus Garcinia contains around 200 species and many are underutilized medicinal crops. In India 35 species are available out of which G. indica, G. gummi-gutta, G. xanthochymus, G. subelliptica and G. mangostana are the common species of Western Ghats while G. lanceaefolia, G. pedunculata, G. kydia and G. xanthochymu are common species in the northeastern Himalayan foot hills. The medicinal value of Garcinia is copious due to the presence of HCA (hydroxycitric acid) the anti-obesity compound in the fruit rinds and leaves. Other than that in the fruit, among the primary metabolites total proteins are present in good percentage; where the SD value is (0.14) among the 8 species under study. The mineral composition showed a great variation in the percentages of potassium, calcium and magnesium (SD being 17.2, 3.5 and 12.15, respectively). The study on vitamin content, organic acids, xanthones and anti-oxidant activity reveals that Garcinia is an important medicinal crop with immense nutraceutical properties. The seed butter of Garcinia is a natural source of fatty acids, which contains 40% of fatty acids. Stearic acid (40%), oleic acid (30%) and linoliec acid are the main components. Various chemical parameters of butter such as saponification value, acid value, iodine number and sterol content were of a range of sunflower oil, sesame oil and ground nut oil (all being commonly used cooking oil in India). An important point to be observed was the almost equal proportion of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids in butter, which is considered as beneficial. The bark exudates studied indicate the lack of organic acids in exudates. The resins were screened for phytochemical properties and the major secondary metabolites like total phenols, flavonoids and xanthones were also estimated.