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Euterpe
A grove of Açaí palms in Brazil
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae (unranked): Angiosperms (unranked): Monocots (unranked): Commelinids Order: Arecales Family: Arecaceae Genus: Euterpe Gaertn.
Species
Euterpe broadwayi Euterpe catinga Euterpe edulis Euterpe longibracteata Euterpe luminosa Euterpe oleracea Euterpe precatoria

The açaí palm (IPA: /asaˈi/) is a member of the genus Euterpe, which contains 7 species of palms native to tropical Central and South America, from Belize south to Brazil and Peru, growing mainly in floodplains and swamps.

The genus is named after the muse Euterpe of Greek mythology. Euterpe are tall, slender palms growing to 15–30 meters, with pinnate leaves up to 3 meters long. Many of the palms that were once in the genus Euterpe have been reclassified into the genus Prestoea (Riffle, 2003). The species Euterpe oleracea is usually called Açaí Palm, after the European derivation of the Tupian word ïwasa'i, 'fruit that cries or expels water'.

Acai palms are fast growing, and are cultivated for both their fruits and for their superior hearts of palm. Global demand for the fruit has expanded rapidly in recent years, and Acai is now cultivated for fruit primarily. The closely related species euterpe edulis (jucara) is now predominantly used for hearts of palm.

Contents 1 Harvesting and uses 1.1 Stem 1.2 Fruit 1.3 Other uses 2 Nutritional content 3 Antioxidants of açaí raw materials 4 Antioxidant activity of açaí juice 5 Other research 6 References 7 External links

Harvesting and uses

Stem

Heart of palm, the soft inner growing tip of some palms (Euterpe edulis, Euterpe oleracea, Bactris gasipaes), is often consumed in salads.^{citation needed}

Fruit

The fruit, a small, round, black-purple drupe about 1 inch (25 mm) in diameter, similar in appearance and size to a grape but with less pulp, is produced in branched panicles of 700 to 900 fruits. Two crops of fruit are produced each year. The fruit has a single large seed about 0.25–0.40 inches (7–10 mm) in diameter. The exocarp of the ripe fruits is a deep purple color, or green, depending on the kind of açaí and its maturity. The mesocarp is pulpy and thin, with a consistent thickness of 1 mm or less. It surrounds the voluminous and hard endocarp which contains a seed with a diminutive embryo and abundant endosperm.^{citation needed} The seed makes up about 80% of the fruit (Schauss, 2006c).

The berries are harvested as food. In a study of three traditional Caboclo populations in the Amazon region of Brazil, açaí palm was described as the most important plant species because the fruit makes up such a major component of diet (up to 42% of the total food intake by weight) and is economically valuable in the region (Murrieta et al., 1999).

The juice and pulp of açaí fruits (Euterpe oleracea) are frequently used in various juice blends, smoothies, sodas, and other beverages. In northern Brazil, açaí (or jussara, which is one of the fruit's common folk names) is traditionally served in gourds called "cuias" with tapioca and, depending on the local preference, can be consumed either salty or sweet (sugar, rapadura and honey are known to be used in the mix). Açaí has become popular in southern Brazil where it is consumed cold as açaí na tigela ("açaí in the bowl"), mostly mixed with granola — a fad in which açai is considered an energizer. Açaí is also widely consumed in Brazil as an ice cream flavor or juice. The juice has also been used in a flavored liqueur.

As the high fat content of açaí (Nutritional content, below) indicates it would deteriorate rapidly after harvest, its raw material is generally available outside the immediate growing region only as juice or fruit pulp that has been frozen or processed as a pulp powder or freeze-dried powder. Several companies now manufacture juices, health drinks, yogurts, and sorbets made from açaí berries, often in combination with other fruits.

Other uses

Apart from the use of its berries as food, the açai palm has other commercial uses. Leaves may be made into hats, mats, baskets, brooms and roof thatch for homes, and trunk wood, resistant to pests, for building construction (Silva, 2005).

Comprising 80% of the berry mass, seeds may be ground for livestock food or as a component of organic soil for plants. Planted seeds are used for new palm tree stock which, under the right growing conditions, requires months to form seedlings. In other words it may take a long time for seedlings to form^{citation needed}

The seeds are a source of polyunsaturated and saturated fatty acids¹² (Silva, 2005) and tree trunks may be processed to yield minerals (Dyer, 1996).

In recent news, the use of açai berry has been promoted as a weight loss diet, boosting energy as well as the fruit's anti-oxidant properties in the United States. However, these supplement products have not been evaluated by the FDA and efficacy is questionable in weight loss.³ In late 2008, lawyers for The Oprah Winfrey Show began investigating potential claims against supplement manufacturers who suggested that frequent Oprah guest Dr. Mehmet Oz had recommended their product or acai in general for weight loss.⁴

Nutritional content

Most of the research to date on açaí has focused on a particular freeze-dried form referred to as Opti-açaí.²⁵ This powder preparation of freeze-dried açaí fruit pulp and skin was reported to contain (per 100 g of extract) 533.9 calories, 52.2 g carbohydrates, 8.1 g protein, and 32.5 g total fat. The carbohydrate portion included 44.2 g of fiber.² The powder was also shown to contain (per 100 g): negligible vitamin C, 260 mg calcium, 4.4 mg iron, and 1002 U vitamin A, as well as aspartic acid and glutamic acid; the amino acid content was 7.59% of total dry weight.

Açaí has an exceptional content of fats, including oleic acid (56.2% of total), palmitic acid (24.1% of total), and linoleic acid (12.5% of total),² and also contains a high amount of beta-sitosterol (78–91% of total sterols).²⁶ These oil compartments in açaí fruit harbor dense contents of polyphenols such as procyanidin oligmers and vanillic acid, syringic acid, p-hydroxybenzoic acid, protocatechuic acid, and ferulic acid which were shown to degrade substantially during storage or exposure to heat.⁷

Antioxidants of açaí raw materials

A comparative analysis reported that açaí had intermediate antioxidant potency among a variety of frozen juice pulps tested. Among the eleven fruits pulps tested, açaí had the fifth-most anti-oxidant potency, with a TEAC (Trolox equivalent antioxidant activity) score of 6.9 mmol g (while the highest scoring fruit domestic fruit, acerola, scored 53.2 mmol g). ⁸

A powdered preparation of freeze-dried açaí fruit pulp and skin was shown to contain anthocyanins (3.19 mg/g), antioxidant capacity of açaí is only about 10%.⁹ The powdered preparation was also reported to contain twelve flavonoid-like compounds, including homoorientin, orientin, taxifolin, deoxyhexose, isovitexin, scoparin, as well as proanthocyanidins (12.89 mg/g), and low levels of resveratrol (1.1 μg/g).²

In a study of different açaí varieties for their antioxidant capacity, a white species displayed no antioxidant activity against different oxygen radicals, whereas the purple variety most often used commercially was excellent against peroxyl radicals, good against peroxynitrite and poor against hydroxyl radicals.⁹

Freeze-dried açaí powder was found to have high antioxidant activity against superoxide (1614 units/g) and peroxyl radicals (1027 μmol TE/g) and milder activity for peroxynitrite and hydroxyl radicals.⁵ The powder was reported to inhibit hydrogen peroxide-induced oxidation in neutrophils, and to have a slight stimulatory effect on nitric oxide production by lipopolysaccharide-stimulated macrophages in vitro.⁵

Extracts of açaí seeds were reported to have antioxidant capacity against peroxyl radicals, similar to the capacity of the pulp, with higher antioxidant capacity against peroxynitrite and hydroxyl radicals.¹⁰

Antioxidant activity of açaí juice

When three commercially available juice mixes containing unspecified percentages of açaí juice were compared for in vitro antioxidant capacity against red wine, tea, six types of pure fruit juice, and pomegranate juice (provided by Pom Wonderful, the sponsor of the study), the average antioxidant capacity was ranked lower than that of pomegranate juice, Concord grape juice, blueberry juice, and red wine. The average was roughly equivalent to that of black cherry or cranberry juice, and was higher than that of orange juice, apple juice, and tea.¹¹

Studies have demonstrated that blood antioxidant capacity increases within two hours of consuming a commercial açaí juice.¹²

Other research

Freeze-dried açaí powder was shown to have mild inhibitory effects on cyclooxygenase enzymes COX-1 and COX-2,⁵ and chemically-extracted polyphenolic-rich fractions from açaí were reported to reduce the proliferation of HL-60 (experimental leukemia) cells in vitro.¹³ In vitro anti-proliferative effects were also observed with extracts from açaí pulp oil.¹⁴

Orally-administered açaí has been tested as a contrast agent for magnetic resonance imaging of the gastrointestinal system.¹⁵ Its anthocyanins have also been characterized for stability as a natural food coloring agent.¹⁶

References

• Dyer, A. P. 1996. Latent energy in Euterpe oleracea. Biomass Energy Environ., Proc. Bioenergy Conf. 9th.
• Murrieta RSS, Dufour DL, Siqueira AD (1999). "Food consumption and subsistence in three Caboclo populations on Marajo Island, Amazonia, Brazil". Human Ecology 27: 455–75. 
• Craft P, Riffle RL (2003). An encyclopedia of cultivated palms. Portland, Or: Timber Press. ISBN 0-88192-558-6. 
• Silva, S. & Tassara, H. (2005). Fruit Brazil Fruit. São Paulo, Brazil, Empresa das Artes.

External links

• Kew Checklist (enter 'Euterpe' in search box)
• Pictures of açaí palms trees and fruit from an article by The Nature Conservancy.

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• This page was last modified on 7 January 2009, at 00:15.

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