The Clinical Effects ofSynsepalum dulcificum: A Review

Abstract

Synsepalum dulcificum or the "miracle fruit" is well known for its taste-modifying ability. The aim of this review was to assess the published medically beneficial as well as potential characteristics of this fruit. A search in three databases, including PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar, was made with appropriate keywords. The resulting articles were screened in different stages based on the title, abstract, and content. A total of nine articles were included in this review. This review summarized the findings of previously published studies on the effects of miracle fruit. The main studied characteristic of the fruit was its effect on the taste receptors, resulting in the sweet sensation when substances with acidic content were ingested. This effect was shown to be related to a glycoprotein called "miraculin." Other beneficial characteristics of this fruit were its antioxidant and anticancer abilities that are due to the various amides existing in the miracle fruit. Apart from the above, the other observed effect of this fruit was its antidiabetic effect that was tested in rats. Further studies should be conducted to establish the findings. The miracle fruit can be a healthy additive due to its unique characteristics, including sour taste sensation modification as well as its antioxidant and antidiabetic effects.

The cholesterol‐lowering activity of miracle fruit ( Synsepalum dulcificum )

“…The fruit of the plant is small, ellipsoid, bright red, and berry‐liked. The fruit possess a unique ability to turn sour foods to sweet by affecting the taste buds of the tongue (Swamy, Suwaibah Abd, Muniandy, & Mallikarjuna Rao, 2014). Due to this unusual property, the natives also call it as miracle fruit or miracle berry.…”

“…Due to this unusual property, the natives also call it as miracle fruit or miracle berry. In Africa, the Miracle fruit has been historically used for treating diarrhea in humans and animals because both its skin and pulp have high content of flavonoid compounds (Inglett & Chen, 2011; Ntie‐Kang et al, 2013; Swamy et al, 2014). The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have accepted the fruit used as an additive because it contains a natural orange‐red color.…”

“…The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have accepted the fruit used as an additive because it contains a natural orange‐red color. Moreover, the fruits have been considered to use in both the carbonated water and sugar solutions as a potential food colorant (Swamy et al, 2014). Besides, the fruit was considered as a natural source of sweetener (Hiwasa‐Tanase, Hirai, Kato, Duhita, & Ezura, 2012; Kant, 2005).…”

Pharmaceutical and Therapeutic Potential of Miraculin and Miracle Berry

“…Miraculin does not activate these receptors until subjected to an acidic pH, generally, between pH 3.0 and 6.0. 29 The possible mechanism of miraculin in the modification of taste is shown in Figure 9.…”

Physicochemical Characterisation of Polysaccharides from the Seeds and Leaves of Miracle Fruit (Synsepalum dulcificum) and Their Antioxidant and α-Glucosidase Inhibitory Activities In Vitro

“…It is noteworthy that all parts of this plant have medicinal importance [9]. However, Swamy et al [10] found that few studies had been done on the medical or clinical effects of miracle fruit aside from well-established studies on the sweetening effects [11]. Inglett and Chen [12] investigated the antioxidant properties of phenolics and flavonoids in the skin, pulp, and seeds of miracle fruit and suggested it as a good source of antioxidants for functional food applications.…”