Spondias tuberosa and Spondias mombin: Nutritional Composition, Bioactive Compounds, Biological Activity and Technological Applications

Abstract

The genus Spondias has two species of native trees from Brazil that deserve to be highlighted: Spondias tuberosa (“umbu”) and Spondias mombin (“cajá”). Their fruit contain bioactive compounds which have been associated with several biological activities. However, they remain little exploited in the development of food and pharmaceutical products. In this perspective, the present review summarizes the literature data about the physicochemical and nutritional characteristics, bioactive compounds, potential health benefits, and industrial applications of these fruit, including their pulp, seed, and peel. The current scenery mapping for scientific articles was performed in the Scopus and Web of Science databases. The study also considered patent applications collected in the Derwent database. Results showed an increase in scientific publications in recent years for both species. Many applications are related to food technology; nevertheless, due to the composition of their non-edible fractions, they have the potential for use in biorefinery, being their use an opportunity for bioeconomy. Thus, this review provides a comprehensive overview of these Brazilian native fruit to offer a theoretical foundation and valuable data for future investigations and exploitation.