Passion fruit

Passion fruit (Passiflora edulis) is a tropical fruit belonging to the family of Passifloraceae. Originating in South America, passion fruit has been used widely in folk medicine in South America to treat anxiety, insomnia, asthma, bronchitis, and urinary infection. At present this fruit is grown worldwide and is used as an edible fruit for the food industry. There are several cultivars of this fruit: purple passion fruit (P. edulis Sims), granadilla (Passiflora ligularis), gulupa (P. edulis Sims. fo edulis), and yellow passion fruit (P. edulis var. flavicarpa Degenerer). In its composition can be found numerous bioactive compounds such as phenolic acids, flavonoids, alkaloids, cyanogenic compounds, glycosides, vitamins, minerals, and terpenoid which have shown several functional properties such as antiinflammatory, antidiabetic, and antianxiety activities, as well as their capacity to protect against cardiovascular disease.