Abstract
African mangosteen (Garcinia livingstonei T. Anderson) is native to Africa and is exotic to other parts of the world. It is a fruit bearing tree with multiple uses. This study was purposed to determine, by analysis, the chemical compositions and nutritive value of the fruits of African mangosteen. Proximate compositions varied with the portions such as epicarp, mesocarp, endocarp and seed tested. All fruit portions contained carbohydrate (37.67-95.02%) and crude protein (0.65-31.76%) as their major components. Moisture (0.45-3.42%), crude fat (1.23-19.55%), crude fiber (2.93-21.13%) and ash (1.76-5.44%) were also found at different levels, depending upon the portions. All portions of fruit were rich in macro and micro elements. The fruits also possessed phenolics (174.02-10.725 mg GAE per g), flavonoid (19.25 to 99.98 A mu g QE per g) and alkaloid (1.56 to 9.49 mg/kg) contents. The constitution of tannins and oxalate which contribute towards the anti-nutritive value was also low, thus making the fruits beneficial for consumption. Quality attributes like relative amount of oleic acid, total unsaturated fatty acid, acid value, free fatty acid, peroxide value and iodine value showed that the seed oil of African mangosteen can become one among the oleic acid based vegetable oils for consumption.