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.

Wastes resulting from the depulping of tropical fruits such as siriguela (Spondias purpurea), umbu (Spondias tuberosa), and juçara (Euterpe edulis) can be used as a source of bioactive compounds and nutrients. Therefore, the aim of this work was to chemically characterize the flours of siriguela seeds and peels (FSSs and FSPs), umbu seeds and peels (FUSs and FUPs), umbu pulp refine cake (FUC), and defatted juçara pulp refine cake (FJC) based on their proximate composition and mineral content, fatty acids, total phenolic content (TPC) and antioxidant capacity (ABTS^•+, DPPH^•, and FRAP). The results were expressed on a dry basis. The FJC had the highest lipid and protein percentage (10% and 31%, respectively), while for carbohydrates; FUS samples had the highest value (80%). FSSs presented the highest levels of Ca (239.7 mg 100 g⁻¹), Mg (183.3 mg 100 g⁻¹), and FSP of K (1403.9 mg 100 g⁻¹). Regarding the fatty acid profiles, palmitic acid (C16:0) was found as the main fatty acid in FSSs (28.87%), FSPs (69.31%), and FUC (45.68%), while oleic acid (C18:1) was found as the main fatty acid in FUSs (32.63%), FUPs (48.24%), and FJC (61.58%). The FUP sample exhibited the highest antioxidant potential (1852.81 mg GAE 100 g⁻¹, 130 µmol Trolox g⁻¹, 131 µmol Trolox g⁻¹, and 590 µmol Fe²⁺ g⁻¹ by TPC, ABTS^•+, DPPH^•, and FRAP, respectively). As the first comparative study of these specific fruits wastes, the results showed that their flours are promising sources of nutrients and bioactive compounds. In addition, their use can contribute to the circular economy and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2 and 12 of the 2030 Agenda.

Umbu (Spondias tuberosa) is a Brazilian Caatinga native fruit that has socioeconomic importance. Pulp is the main product of its agro-industrialization. However, de-pulping gives rise to about 25% residue. It is known that fruit peels and seeds are composed of macro and micronutrients as well as bioactive compounds, offering the umbu residue an opportunity to add value to the fruit agro-chain. As the recovery of bioactive compounds from umbu seeds has not yet been optimized, this work aimed to evaluate their recovery through a more sustainable approach, using propylene glycol as a solvent in microwave-assisted solid–liquid extraction. For that, an experimental design varying the propylene glycol percentage (15–85%) and temperature (59–201 °C) was adopted. The total phenolic compounds (TPC) and antioxidant capacity according to DPPH^• were evaluated as responses. The highest values were found at 201 °C and 50% propylene glycol (3242 mg GAE/100 g and 162 µmol Trolox/g for TPC and DPPH^•, respectively). The values observed were, at least, 8 times higher than those obtained in the worst experimental condition (25% propylene glycol and 80 °C), showing that the independent variables had an effect on the evaluated responses (p < 0.05). All models were significant, displaying p value < 0.05, and no lack of fit was observed. High adjusted R² values (>0.95) confirm the good fit of the data to the models. Thus, microwave-assisted extraction employing propylene glycol as a solvent could be a more sustainable method for the use of umbu seeds.

The essential oil of Salvia officinalis, an aromatic plant belonging to the Lamiaceae family, is very useful in the pharmaceutical, food and cosmetics industries due to its biological properties, which have anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and antimicrobial effects. The present work aims to optimize the extraction of essential oils from commercial samples using an experimental design with two independent variables, the solid/liquid ratio (w/v) and time, followed by an evaluation of the response variables, yield and antioxidant activity. A chemical characterization of the oils was also carried out. For this, the material obtained from local stores in the city of Rio de Janeiro was subjected to hydrodistillation in a Clevenger apparatus, and the identification and quantification of the compounds in the isolated oil were carried out using GC/MS. The antioxidant capacity was determined by calculating the percentage inhibition of the DPPH^● radical, resulting in a variation between 8.7 and 28.3% inhibition. The results show that the number of compounds identified and their respective chemical classes have an impact on the difference in the percentage of inhibition of the radical due to their particular properties. In this work, we chose to evaluate the experiments that presented the best and worst responses in the experimental design, which where obtained in the following conditions: the solid/liquid ratio was 1:14 (w/v) for 180 min and 1:50 (w/v) for 60 min, respectively. The first condition showed the best results, which may be associated with a higher concentration of sesquiterpenes, highlighting β-caryophyllene, which has recognized antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. It can therefore be concluded that sage essential oil has significant bioactive properties; however, the differences in extraction conditions have a direct influence on antioxidant activity, since during the process, the conditions applied can lead to the loss of important volatile compounds.

Juçara (Euterpe edulis) is a Brazilian Atlantic Forest palm that produces phenolic-rich fruits used for pulp preparation. The pulp refining produces antioxidant and lipid-rich residue. This study applied glycerol as a green solvent for the microwave-assisted extraction of antioxidant compounds from residue. The variables included glycerol concentration (0–100%), microwave time (2–18 min), and temperature (53–187 °C). The total phenolic compounds (TPC) and DPPH^• antioxidant capacity were influenced by glycerol concentration and temperature (p < 0.05). TPC ranged from 1052 to 5329 mg GAE/100g and antioxidant capacity from 29 to 191 µmol Trolox/g. The highest values were at 187 °C, using 50% glycerol for 10 min. All models were significant, with R² above 0.95. Glycerol, as a green solvent in microwave-assisted extraction, improves antioxidant compound recovery from juçara residue, presenting itself as a sustainable approach for adding value to the fruit production chain.

Metallic nanoparticles have a wide range of applications due to their size-dependent properties. Their synthesis usually uses hydroxides as reducing agents; however, sustainable approaches are exploring the use of plant-derived bioactive compounds as greener alternatives. Umbu is a native fruit from the Brazilian Caatinga biome with significant socioeconomic importance. Its depulping process generates approximately 25% of waste, which is rich in antioxidant compounds that can be used for nanoparticle synthesis. Therefore, this work aims to develop a green synthesis route for silver nanoparticles (AgNPs), using umbu seed extract as both reducing and stabilizing agent. The antioxidant compounds extraction was performed via microwave-assisted extraction at 100 °C for 15 minutes, using 70% ethanol as solvent. Various parameters were investigated in the synthesis process, including AgNO3 concentration (0.004 to 0.1 M), extract-to-precursor ratio (1:1 to 10:1 v/v), stirring speed (0-600 rpm), temperature (25 to 40 °C) and reaction time (1 to 6 h). The best synthesis conditions were found to be 0.01 M AgNO3, extract-to-AgNO3 ratio of 10:1 v/v, stirring at 600 rpm, room temperature, and a reaction time of 6 h. Under these conditions, a conversion of 97.1% was achieved, producing AgNPs with an average size of 10.7 nm, mainly composed of silver oxides.