About Herbs

Bottom Line: Mangosteen has not been shown to treat cancer in humans.

Despite claims by several marketers, the efficacy and safety of mangosteen products for cancer treatment in humans have not been established. Mangosteen is a plant native to Southeast Asia. The fruits are used in traditional medicine to treat skin infections, wounds, and diarrhea. Recent studies have revealed that xanthones from the fruit hulls exhibit antibacterial ⁽³⁾, antifungal ⁽⁴⁾, and antiinflammatory ⁽⁵⁾, cytototoxic ⁽¹²⁾ , and aromatase-inhibitory ⁽¹⁴⁾ properties. Alpha-mangostin, a xanthone, inhibited growth of leukemia HL60 cells ^{(1) (6)}, reduced the synthesis of prostaglandins ⁽⁵⁾, prevented oxidative damage of LDL ⁽⁷⁾ in vitro. There is also preliminary evidence that alpha- and gamma-mangostins act as histamine and serotonin receptor blockers ⁽⁸⁾, and also inhibit HIV-1 protease ⁽⁹⁾. Garcinone E, another xanthone, exerts cytotoxic effects against hepatocellular carcinoma cells ⁽¹⁰⁾. Extract from the pericarp of mangosteen has antioxidant ⁽¹³⁾, antiproliferative and apoptotic effects ⁽¹¹⁾. However, there is no data from clinical trials to verify these effects in humans.
Mangosteen products may interfere with certain chemotherapeutic drugs. Diabetic patients should use mangosteen juice with caution due to the sugar content.

• Bacterial Infections
• Diarrhea
• Fungal infections
• Inflammation
• Skin infections
• Wound healing

The xanthones, alpha- and beta-mangostins, and garcinone B exhibit strong inhibitory effect against Mycobacterium tuberculosis in vitro ⁽³⁾. They also demonstrated aromatase inhibitory activity ⁽¹⁴⁾. Alpha-mangostin has been shown to inhibit growth of leukemia HL60 cells by inducing caspase-3-dependent apoptosis ^{(1) (6)}, reduce the synthesis of prostaglandins by inhibiting the activities of COX-1 and COX-2 enzymes ⁽⁵⁾, and prevent oxidative damage of LDL by functioning as a free-radical scavenger ⁽⁷⁾. Alpha- and gamma-mangostins also antagonize the activities of histamine and serotonin by acting as receptor blockers ⁽⁸⁾. Garcinone E has cytotoxic effects against hepatocellular carcinoma cells ⁽¹⁰⁾. In vitro studies have also demonstrated that a crude methanolic extract from the pericarp of mangosteen has antiproliferative, antioxidative, and apoptotic effects against SKBR3 breast cancer cells ⁽¹¹⁾.

1. Matsumoto K, et al.Induction of apoptosis by xanthones from mangosteen in human leukemia cell lines. J Nat Prod 2003; 66(8):1124-1127.
2. Suksamrarn S, et al. Xanthones from the green fruit hulls of Garcinia mangostana. J Nat Prod 2002; 65(5):761-763.
3. Suksamrarn S, et al. Antimycobacterial activity of prenylated xanthones from the fruits of Garcinia mangostana. Chem Pharm Bull (Tokyo) 2003; 51(7):857-859.
4. Gopalakrishnan G, Banumathi B, Suresh G. Evaluation of the antifungal activity of natural xanthones from Garcinia mangostana and their synthetic derivatives. J Nat Prod 1997; 60(5):519-524.
5. Nakatani K, et al. Inhibition of cyclooxygenase and prostaglandin E2 synthesis by gamma-mangostin, a xanthone derivative in mangosteen, in C6 rat glioma cells. Biochem Pharmacol 2002; 63(1):73-79.
6. Matsumoto K, et al. Preferential target is mitochondria in alpha-mangostin-induced apoptosis in human leukemia HL60 cells. Bioorg Med Chem 2004; 12(22):5799-5806.
7. Williams P, et al. Mangostin inhibits the oxidative modification of human low density lipoprotein. Free Radic Res 1995; 23(2):175-184.
8. Chairungsrilerd N, et al. Histaminergic and serotonergic receptor blocking substances from the medicinal plant Garcinia mangostana. Planta Med 1996; 62(5):471-472.
9. Chen SX, Wan M, Loh BN. Active constituents against HIV-1 protease from Garcinia mangostana. Planta Med 1996; 62(4):381-382.
10. Ho CK, Huang YL, Chen CC. Garcinone E, a xanthone derivative, has potent cytotoxic effect against hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines. Planta Med 2002; 68(11):975-979.
11. Moongkarndi P, et al. Antiproliferation, antioxidation and induction of apoptosis by Garcinia mangostana (mangosteen) on SKBR3 human breast cancer cell line. J Ethnopharmacol 2004; 90(1):161-166.
12. Suksamrarn S, et al. Cytotoxic prenylated xanthones from the young fruit of Garcinia mangostana. Chem Pharm Bull 2006: 54(3): 301-5.
13. Jung HA, et al. Antioxidant xanthones from the pericarp of Garcinica mangostana (Mangosteen). J Agric Food Chem 2006; 54(6): 2077-82.
14. Balunas MJ, Su B, Brueggemerier RW, Kinghorn AD. Xanthones from the Botanical Dietary Supplement Mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana) with Aromatase Inhibitory Activity. J Nat Prod. 2008 Jun 18.