Xanthones are a class of polyphenolic compounds that commonly occur in plants and have been shown to have extensive biological and pharmacological activities. The pharmacological properties as it relates to the cardiovascular system and potential anti-tumor benefits have attracted great interest. Mangosteen is a fruit grown in Thailand and Myanmar whose rind (the pericarp) have some medicinal properties, probably due the high amount of xanthones. There are other plants besides mangosteen that also have these substances.

Benefit and research studies, review
Xanthones and derivatives have been shown to have beneficial effects on some cardiovascular diseases, including ischemic heart disease, atherosclerosis, hypertension and thrombosis. The protective effects in the cardiovascular system may be due to their antioxidant, antiinflammatory, platelet aggregation inhibitory, antithrombotic and/or vasorelaxant activities. In particular, the antagonism of endogenous nitric oxide synthase inhibitors by xanthones may represent the basis for improved endothelial function and for reduction of events associated with atherosclerosis. They may also have anti-tumor activity thus potentially having an influence in the prevention or treatment of certain cancers.

Human studies
As of 2017, I am not aware of human studies with xanthones derived from mangosteen.

buy xanthone in Mangosteen pill 500 mg (whole fruit and rind) - direct from Thailand

Made from the highest quality ORGANIC raw material available, direct from Thailand. The actual active ingredients, xanthones, are mostly in the rind and seed, and less in the fruit. We use the whole fruit - rind, seed and fruit - in order to provide you with the full spectrum of xanthones. There are about 20 different xanthones in the whole fruit. Half of this product is rind, the other half whole fruit.

Buy Xanthones in Mangosteen

Supplement facts
Mangosteen 500 mg (Garcinia mangostana whole fruit and pericarp or rind)

Additional beneficial fruit and berry extract supplements include goji berry, noni fruit extract, pomegranate fruit extract, Acai berry extract and cranberry fruit extract.

Dosage: Since human studies with mangosteen and xanthones are lacking, it is not easy to say what the ideal dosage is, plus, that may vary from person to person, and could vary based on the medical condition being treated, other supplements used, one's diet, other medicines used, etc.

What's in mangosteen fruit
Several compounds in mangosteen appear to be active, particularly xanthones. Some of these include mangostin, mangostenol, mangostenone A, mangostenone B, trapezifolixanthone, tovophyllin B, alpha- and beta-mangostins, garcinone B, mangostinone, mangostanol, mangosharin, and the flavonoid epicatechin.

J Nutr. 2012. Xanthones in mangosteen juice are absorbed and partially conjugated by healthy adults. Results show that xanthones in mangosteen juice are absorbed when ingested along with a high-fat meal.

Benefits

Antioxidant benefit
Bioavailability and antioxidant effects of a xanthone-rich Mangosteen product in humans.
J Agric Food Chem. 2009. Brunswick Laboratories, Norton, Massachusetts, USA.
This study investigated the absorption and antioxidant effects of a xanthone-rich mangosteen liquid in healthy human volunteers after the acute consumption of 59 mL of the supplement. The liquid contained mangosteen, aloe vera, green tea, and multivitamins. Results indicated that alpha-mangostin and vitamins B(2) and B(5) were bioavailableh. The antioxidant capacity measured with the oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) assay was increased with a maximum effect of 18% after 2 h, and the increased antioxidant level lasted at least 4 h. Overall, this study demonstrated the bioavailability of antioxidants from a xanthone-rich mangosteen product and its in vivo antioxidant effects.

Aromatase inhibition and potential breast cancer inhibition
Xanthones from the botanical dietary supplement Garcinia mangostana with aromatase inhibitory activity.
J Nat Prod. 2008. Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy, Program for Collaborative Research in the Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA.
Twelve xanthone constituents of the botanical dietary supplement mangosteen (the pericarp of Garcinia mangostana) were screened using a noncellular, enzyme-based microsomal aromatase inhibition assay. Of these compounds, garcinone D), garcinone E, alpha-mangostin, and gamma-mangostin exhibited dose-dependent inhibitory activity. In a follow-up cell-based assay using SK-BR-3 breast cancer cells that express high levels of aromatase, the most potent of these four xanthones was gamma-mangostin. Because xanthones may be consumed in substantial amounts from commercially available mangosteen products, the consequences of frequent intake of mangosteen botanical dietary supplements require further investigation to determine their possible role in breast cancer chemoprevention.

Brain tissue protection
The natural xanthone alpha-mangostin reduces oxidative damage in rat brain tissue.
Nutr Neurosci. 2009. Instituto Nacional de Neurología y Neurocirugía Manuel Velasco Suárez, Insurgentes Sur México DF, Mexico.
The antiperoxidative properties of alpha-mangostin, a xanthone isolated from mangosteen fruit, were tested for the first time in nerve tissue exposed to different toxic insults. Two reliable biological preparations (rat brain homogenates and synaptosomal P2 fractions) were exposed to the toxic actions of a free radical generator (ferrous sulfate), an excitotoxic agent (quinolinate), and a mitochondrial toxin (3-nitropropionate). alpha-Mangostin decreased the lipoperoxidative action of FeSO(4) in both preparations in a concentration-dependent manner, and completely abolished the peroxidative effects of quinolinate, 3-nitropropionate and FeSO(4) + quinolinate at all concentrations tested. Interestingly, when tested alone in brain homogenates, alpha-mangostin significantly decreased the lipoperoxidation even below basal levels. alpha-mangostin exerts a robust antiperoxidative effect in brain tissue preparations probably through its properties as a free radical scavenger. In light of these findings, this antioxidant should be tested in other neurotoxic models involving oxidative stress.

Cancer protection
Xanthones can cause apoptosis which could be beneficial in cancer.

H Pylori infection
Arch Pharm Res. 2013. Anti-Helicobacter pylori xanthones of Garcinia fusca. A new geranylated xanthone derivative, fuscaxanthone I (1), along with nine xanthones (2-9 and 11), a biphenyl (10) and three biflavonoids (12-14) were isolated from the roots of Garcinia fusca Pierre. Compounds 8, 10 and 11-14 were reported from this plant species for the first time. Their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic analyses, including 1D- and 2D-NMR and MS. The isolated compounds were evaluated for antibacterial activity against Helicobacter pylori. Cowaxanthone (5) and fukugiside (14) exhibited stronger inhibitory activity against H. pylori DMST reference strain at MICs 4.6 and 10.8 μM, respectively, than that of the control metronidazole. Isojacareubin (8) displayed the most potent activity against H. pylori HP40 clinical isolate with MIC 23.9 μM, which was approximately two times greater than that of the standard drug amoxicillin.

Leukemia prevention and treatment naturally?
Induction of apoptosis by xanthones from mangosteen in human leukemia cell lines.
J Nat Prod. 2003.
We examined the effects of six xanthones from the pericarps of mangosteen, Garcinia mangostana, on the cell growth inhibition of human leukemia cell line HL60. All displayed growth inhibitory effects. Among them, alpha-mangostin showed complete inhibition at 10 microM through the induction of apoptosis.

Liver cancer
Garcinone E, a xanthone derivative, has potent cytotoxic effect against hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines.
Planta Med. 2002.
We extracted and purified 6 xanthone compounds from the rinds (peel) of the fruits of Garcinia mangostana L.and then tested the cytotoxic effects of these compounds on a panel of 14 different human cancer cell lines including 6 hepatoma cell lines. Our results have shown that garcinone E has potent cytotoxic effect on all liver cancer cell lines as well as on the other gastric and lung cancer cell lines included in the screen.

Prostate cancer
Alpha-mangostin suppresses PC-3 human prostate carcinoma cell metastasis by inhibiting matrix metalloproteinase-2/9 and urokinase-plasminogen expression through the JNK signaling pathway.
J Agric Food Chem. 2009; Division of Urology, Department of Surgery, Jhong-Hua Road, Yong-Kang,, Taiwan, Republic of China.
Alpha-mangostin, a component of Garcinia mangostana Linn, is a xanthone derivative shown to have antioxidant and anticarcinogen properties. In this study, we first report the antimetastatic effect of alpha-mangostin in the human prostate carcinoma cell line PC-3.

Fungal infection
Evaluation of the antifungal activity of natural xanthones from Garcinia mangostana and their synthetic derivatives.
J Nat Prod. 1997.
The antifungal activity of several xanthones isolated from the fruit hulls of mangosteen and some derivatives of mangostin against three phytopathogenic fungi, Fusarium oxysporum vasinfectum, Alternaria tenuis, and Dreschlera oryzae, has been evaluated. These natural compounds showed good inhibitory activity against the three fungi.

Tuberculosis
Antimycobacterial activity of prenylated xanthones from the fruits of mangosteen.
Chem Pharm Bull. 2003.
Prenylated xanthones, isolated from the fruit hulls and the edible arils and seeds of mangosteen, were tested for their antituberculosis potential. Alpha- and beta-mangostins and garcinone B exhibited strong inhibitory effect against Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

Review article
J Med Assoc Thai. 2014. Xanthones from mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana): multi-targeting pharmacological properties. This review focuses on mangosteen pericarp extracts, xanthones and derivatives for the future laboratory experiment and development in pharmacological aspects. All relevant literature databases were searched up to 2 March 2014. The search terms included mangosteen, xanthone, mangostin, and gatanin in all of the human, animal, in vitro and in vivo studies. Anti-intflammation, antioxidant, antibacterial, anticancer and antiulcer properties of each substance were the key parameters. Xanthones are a group of oxygen-containing heterocyclic compounds including alpha-mangostin, gamma-mangostin, mangosteen extract, xanthone derivatives and synthetic xanthones, which provide remarkable and diverse pharmacological effects such as anticancer, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial activities. These xanthone compounds may play a major role in therapeutic treatment ofthe diseases but precise mechanisms ofaction are still unclear and needfurther investigation.