Skip to main content

Bioactive Compounds of Avocado (Persea americana Mill.)

  • Living reference work entry
  • First Online:
Bioactive Compounds in Underutilized Fruits and Nuts

Part of the book series: Reference Series in Phytochemistry ((RSP))

  • 233 Accesses

Abstract

Avocado (Persea americana Mill.) contains a variety of essential nutrients and numerous phytochemicals that play significant roles in disease treatment as well as in management through certain mechanisms. Persea americana consist of long-chain polyunsaturated omega-3 fatty acids (ω-3 PUFAs), which have effects on many human disorders and diseases. Studies suggested that avocado may support cardiovascular health, weight management, and anti-aging. (−)-Epicatechin, a phenolic present in Persea americana fruits, has the ability to directly or indirectly scavenge reactive oxygen species (ROS) by chemically reacting or by modulating the pathways and also acts as an anticancer molecule. All parts of the Persea americana contain secondary metabolites, and their activities against several diseases and metabolic disorders have been discussed in this chapter.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Galanakis CM (2017) Introduction. In: Galanakis CM (ed) Nutraceutical and functional food components effects of innovative processing techniques, 1st edn. Academic, London, pp 1–14

    Google Scholar 

  2. Correia RT, Borges KC, Medeiros MF, Genovese MI (2012) Bioactive compounds and phenolic-linked functionality of powdered tropical fruit residues. Food Sci Technol Int 18(6):539–547

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Carbonell-Capella JM, Buniowska M, Barba FJ et al (2014) Analytical methods for determining bioavailability and bioaccessibility of bioactive compounds from fruits and vegetables: a review. Compr Rev Food Sci Food Saf 13(2):155–171

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Carbonell-Capella JM, Barba FJ, Esteve MJ, Frigola A (2013) Quality parameters, bioactive compounds and their correlation with antioxidant capacity of commercial fruit-based baby foods. Food Sci Technol Int 20(7):479–487

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Mouhid L, Corzo-Martínez M, Torres C et al (2017) Improving in vivo efficacy of bioactive molecules: an overview of potentially antitumor phytochemicals and currently available lipid-based delivery systems. J Oncol 2017:7351976

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Porrini M, Riso P (2008) Factors influencing the bioavailability of antioxidants in foods: a critical appraisal. Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis 18(10):647–650

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Bergh BO, Lahav E (1996) Fruit breeding. Tree and tropical fruits, vol I. Wiley, West Lafayette

    Google Scholar 

  8. Krumreich FD, Borges CD, Mendonça CRB et al (2018) Bioactive compounds and quality parameters of avocado oil obtained by different processes. Food Chem 257:376–381

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Yasir M, Das S, Kharya M (2010) The phytochemical and pharmacological profile of Persea americana Mill. Pharmacogn Rev 4(7):77–84

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  10. Dreher ML, Davenport AJ (2013) Hass avocado composition and potential health effects. Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr 53(7):738–750

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  11. Yahia EM, Woolf AB (2011) Avocado (Persea americana Mill.). In: Yahia EM (ed) Postharvest biology and technology of tropical and subtropical fruits, 1st edn. Woodhead Publishing Ltd., Cambridge

    Google Scholar 

  12. Pino JA, Rosado A, Aguero J (2000) Volatile components of avocado (Persea americana Mill.) fruits. J Essent Oil Res 12(3):377–378

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Scora RW, Scora PE (1998) Leaf oils of two new avocado varieties endemic to Costa Rica. J Essent Oil Res 10(6):705–707

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Werman MJ, Mokady S, Neeman I (1990) Partial isolation and characterization of a new natural inhibitor of lysyl oxidase from avocado seed oil. J Agric Food Chem 38(12):2164–2168

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. De Almeida AP, Miranda MMFS, Simoni IC et al (1998) Flavonol monoglycosides isolated from the antiviral fractions of Persea americana (Lauraceae) leaf infusion. Phyther Res 12(8):562–567

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Rodríguez-Carpena JG, Morcuende D, Andrade MJ et al (2011) Avocado (Persea americana Mill.) phenolics, in vitro antioxidant and antimicrobial activities, and inhibition of lipid and protein oxidation in porcine patties. J Agric Food Chem 59(10):5625–5635

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Sciancalepore V, Dorbessan W (1982) Sterol composition of avocado oil (Persea americana Mill.). Grasas Aceites 33:273–275

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Gross J, Gabai M, Lifshitz A, Sklarz B (1974) Structures of some carotenoids from the pulp of Persea americana. Phytochemistry 13(9):1917–1921

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Kashman Y, Néeman I, Lifshitz A (1970) New compounds from avocado pear-II. Tetrahedron 26(8):1943–1951

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Oberlies NH, Rogers LL, Martin JM, McLaughlin JL (1998) Cytotoxic and insecticidal constituents of the unripe fruit of Persea americana. J Nat Prod 61(6):781–785

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Adikaram NKB, Ewing DF, Karunaratne AM, Wijeratne EMK (1992) Antifungal compounds from immature avocado fruit peel. Phytochemistry 31(1):93–96

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  22. Melgar B, Dias MI, Ciric A et al (2018) Bioactive characterization of Persea americana Mill. by-products: a rich source of inherent antioxidants. Ind Crop Prod 111:212–218

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Miranda MMFS, Almeida AP, Costa SS et al (1997) In vitro activity of extracts of Persea americana leaves on acyclovir-resistant and phosphonoacetic resistant herpes simplex virus. Phytomedicine 4(4):347–352

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  24. Terasawa N, Sakakibara M, Murata M (2006) Antioxidative activity of avocado epicarp hot water extract. Food Sci Technol Res 12(1):55–58

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Adeboye JO, Fajonyomi MO, Makinde JM, Taiwo OB (1999) A preliminary study on the hypotensive activity of Persea americana leaf extracts in anaesthetized normotensive rats. Fitoterapia 70(1):15–20

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. Hashimura H, Ueda C, Kawabata J, Kasai T (2001) Acetyl-CoA carboxylase inhibitors from avocado (Persea americana Mill) fruits. Biosci Biotechnol Biochem 65(7):1656–1658

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  27. Kawagishi H, Fukumoto Y, Hatakeyama M et al (2001) Liver injury suppressing compounds from avocado (Persea americana). J Agric Food Chem 49(5):2215–2221

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  28. USDA (U.S. Department of Agriculture) (2011) Avocado, almond, pistachio and walnut composition. Nutrient data laboratory. USDA National Nutrient Database for standard reference, release 24. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  29. Haytowitz DB (2015) Updating USDA’s key foods list for what we eat in America, NHANES 2011–12. Proc Food Sci 4:71–78

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Carrillo C, Cavia MM, Alonso-Torre S (2012) Role of oleic acid in immune system; mechanism of action; a review. Nutr Hosp 27(4):978–990

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  31. Sales-Campos H, de Souza PR, Peghini BC et al (2012) An overview of the modulatory effects of oleic acid in health and disease. Mini Rev Med Chem 13(2):201–210

    Google Scholar 

  32. Abubakar M, Majinda R (2016) GC-MS analysis and preliminary antimicrobial activity of Albizia adianthifolia (Schumach) and Pterocarpus angolensis (DC). Medicines 3(1):3

    Article  PubMed Central  CAS  Google Scholar 

  33. Wu L, Gao H, Wang X et al (2010) Analysis of chemical composition of Chrysanthemum indicum flowers by GC/MS and HPLC. J Med Plants Res 4(5):421–426

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  34. Fuerst JF, Cox GF, Weaver SM, Duncan WC (1980) Comparison between undecylenic acid and tolnaftate in the treatment of tinea pedis. Cutis 25(5):544–546

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  35. Alvizouri-Muñoz M, Carranza-Madrigal J, Herrera-Abarca J et al (1992) Effects of avocado as a source of monounsaturated fatty acids on plasma lipid levels. Arch Med Res 23(4):163–167

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  36. Colquhoun DM, Moores D, Somerset SM, Humphries JA (1992) Comparison of the effects on lipoproteins and apolipoproteins of a diet high in monounsaturated fatty acids, enriched with avocado, and a high-carbohydrate diet. Am J Clin Nutr 56(4):671–677

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  37. Carranza-Madrigal J, Herrera-Abarca JE, Alvizouri-Muñoz M et al (1997) Effects of a vegetarian diet vs. a vegetarian diet enriched with avocado in hypercholesterolemic patients. Arch Med Res 28(4):537–541

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  38. Itsiopoulos C, Marx W, Mayr HL, Tatucu-Babet OA, Dash SR, George ES, Trakman GL, Kelly JT, Thomas CJ, Brazionis L (2018) The role of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid supplementation in the management of type 2 diabetes mellitus: a narrative review. J Nutr Intermed Metab 14:42–51

    Article  Google Scholar 

  39. López Ledesma R, Frati Munari AC, Hernández Domínguez BC et al (1996) Monounsaturated fatty acid (avocado) rich diet for mild hypercholesterolemia. Arch Med Res 27(4):519–523

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  40. Lerman-Garber I, Ichazo-Cerro S, Zamora-González J et al (1994) Effect of a high-monounsaturated fat diet enriched with avocado in NIDDM patients. Diabetes Care 17(4):311–315

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  41. Mozaffarian D, Benjamin EJ, Go AS et al (2016) Executive summary: heart disease and stroke statistics-2016 update: a report from the American Heart Association. Circulation 133(4):447–454

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  42. Mozaffarian D, Wu JHY (2011) Omega-3 fatty acids and cardiovascular disease effects on risk factors, molecular pathways, and clinical events. J Am Coll Cardiol 58(20):2047–2067

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  43. Shahidi F, Ambigaipalan P (2018) Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and their health benefits. Annu Rev Food Sci Technol 9:345–381

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  44. Kato I, Akhmedkhanov A, Koenig K et al (1997) Prospective study of diet and female colorectal cancer: The New York University women’s health study. Nutr Cancer 28(3):276–281

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  45. Takezaki T, Inoue M, Kataoka H et al (2003) Diet and lung cancer risk from a 14-year population-based prospective study in Japan: with special reference to fish consumption. Nutr Cancer 45(2):160–167

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  46. Freitas RDS, Campos MM (2019) Protective effects of omega-3 fatty acids in cancer-related complications. Nutrients 11(5):945

    Article  CAS  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  47. Cao WQ, Ma ZF, Rasenick MM et al (2012) N-3 poly-unsaturated fatty acids shift estrogen signaling to inhibit human breast cancer cell growth. PLoS One 7(12):52838

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  48. Yee LD, Young DC, Rosol TJ et al (2018) Dietary (n-3) polyunsaturated fatty acids inhibit HER-2/neu-induced breast cancer in mice independently of the PPARγ ligand rosiglitazone. J Nutr 135(5):983–988

    Article  Google Scholar 

  49. Gammone MA, Riccioni G, Parrinello G, D’orazio N (2018) Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids: benefits and endpoints in sport. Nutrients 11(1):46

    Article  PubMed Central  CAS  Google Scholar 

  50. Yehuda S, Rabinovitz S, Mostofsky DI (2005) Essential fatty acids and the brain: from infancy to aging. Neurobiol Aging 26(1):98–102

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  51. Dyall SC (2015) Long-chain omega-3 fatty acids and the brain: a review of the independent and shared effects of EPA, DPA and DHA. Front Aging Neurosci 7:52

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  CAS  Google Scholar 

  52. Parr AJ, Bolwell GP (2000) Phenols in the plant and in man. The potential for possible nutritional enhancement of the diet by modifying the phenols content or profile. J Sci Food Agric 80(7):985–1012

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  53. Yang CS, Landau JM, Huang MT, Newmark HL (2001) Inhibition of carcinogenesis by dietary polyphenolic compounds. Annu Rev Nutr 21:381–406

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  54. Cos P, Ying L, Calomme M et al (1998) Structure-activity relationship and classification of flavonoids as inhibitors of xanthine oxidase and superoxide scavengers. J Nat Prod 61(1):71–76

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  55. Di Stefano V, Avellone G, Bongiorno D et al (2017) Quantitative evaluation of the phenolic profile in fruits of six avocado (Persea americana) cultivars by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-heated electrospray-mass spectrometry. Int J Food Prop 20(6):1302–1312

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  56. Shay J, Elbaz HA, Lee I et al (2015) Molecular mechanisms and therapeutic effects of (−)-Epicatechin and other polyphenols in Cancer, inflammation, diabetes, and neurodegeneration. Oxidative Med Cell Longev 2015:1–13

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  57. Kosińska A, Karamać M, Estrella I et al (2012) Phenolic compound profiles and antioxidant capacity of Persea americana Mill. peels and seeds of two varieties. J Agric Food Chem 60(18):4613–4619

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  58. Kosińska A, Karamac M, Estrella I, Herna T et al (2012) Phenolic compound profiles and antioxidant capacity of Persea americana Mill. peels and seeds of two varieties. J Agric Food Chem 60(18):4613–4619

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  59. Chai WM, Wei MK, Wang R et al (2015) Avocado proanthocyanidins as a source of tyrosinase inhibitors: structure characterization, inhibitory activity, and mechanism. J Agric Food Chem 63(33):7381–7387

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  60. Khan A, Ali T, Rehman SU et al (2018) Neuroprotective effect of quercetin against the detrimental effects of LPS in the adult mouse brain. Front Pharmacol 9:1–16

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  61. Larijani K, Rustaiyan A, Abroomand Azar P et al (2010) Composition of essential oil of leaves of Persea americana cultivated in Iran. Chem Nat Compd 46(3):489–490

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  62. Rodriguez-Saona C, Maynard DF, Phillips S, Trumble JT (2000) Avocadofurans and their tetrahydrofuran analogues: comparison of growth inhibitory and insecticidal activity. J Agric Food Chem 48(8):3642–3645

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  63. Rosenblat G, Kagan HM, Shah MA et al (1995) Chemical characterization of lysyl oxidase inhibitor from avocado seed oil. J Am Oil Chem Soc 72(2):225–229

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  64. Sagrero Nieves L, Bartley JP (1995) Volatile components of avocado leaves (Persea americana Mill) from the Mexican race. J Sci Food Agric 67(1):49–51

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  65. Sinyinda S, Gramshaw JW (1998) Volatiles of avocado fruit. Food Chem 62(4):483–487

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  66. Lee TH, Tsai YF, Huang TT et al (2012) Heptadecanols from the leaves of Persea americana var. americana. Food Chem 132(2):921–924

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  67. Ying Chen L, Hsun Shuo C, Chien Fang P et al (2012) Secondary metabolites from the unripe pulp of Persea americana and their antimycobacterial activities. Food Chem 135(4):2904–2909

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  68. Brai BIC, Odetola AA, Agomo PU (2007) Effects of Persea americana leaf extracts on body weight and liver lipids in rats fed hyperlipidaemic diet. Afr J Biotechnol 6(8):8

    Google Scholar 

  69. Musabayane C (2012) The effects of medicinal plants on renal function and blood pressure in diabetes mellitus: review article. Cardiovasc J Afr 23(8):462–468

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  70. Lee EA, Angka L, Rota S-G et al (2014) Inhibition of fatty acid oxidation with Avocatin B selectively targets AML cells and leukemia stem cells. Blood 124(21):268

    Google Scholar 

  71. Falodun A, Iyamabo H, Odion E, Engel-Lutz N (2013) Antiproliferative and pro-apoptotic activities of the stem bark of Persea americana (lauraceae) Mill in human breast adenocarcinoma cell line. J Appl Sci Environ Manag 17(3):433–438

    Google Scholar 

  72. Falodun A, Engel N, Kragl U et al (2013) Novel anticancer alkene lactone from Persea americana. Pharm Biol 51(6):700–706

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  73. D’Ambrosio SM, Han C, Pan L et al (2011) Aliphatic acetogenin constituents of avocado fruits inhibit human oral cancer cell proliferation by targeting the EGFR/RAS/RAF/MEK/ERK1/2 pathway. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 409(3):465–469

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  CAS  Google Scholar 

  74. Abubakar ANF, Achmadi SS, Suparto IH (2017) Triterpenoid of avocado (Persea americana) seed and its cytotoxic activity toward breast MCF-7 and liver HepG2 cancer cells. Asian Pac J Trop Biomed 7(5):1–4

    Article  Google Scholar 

  75. Omeje KO, Ozioko JN, Opmeje HC (2018) Pharmacological Potentials, Characterization and Fatty Acids Profile of Persea americana Mill. (Avocardo) Seed Oil Using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectroscopy. Biochemistry & Analytical Biochemistry 07 (04)

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mohammad Yasir .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Section Editor information

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2019 Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this entry

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this entry

Yasir, M. (2019). Bioactive Compounds of Avocado (Persea americana Mill.). In: Murthy, H., Bapat, V. (eds) Bioactive Compounds in Underutilized Fruits and Nuts. Reference Series in Phytochemistry. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-06120-3_12-1

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-06120-3_12-1

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-06120-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-06120-3

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Chemistry and Mat. ScienceReference Module Physical and Materials ScienceReference Module Chemistry, Materials and Physics

Publish with us

Policies and ethics