Phenolic compounds in edible species of the Anacardiaceae family – a review

The Anacardiaceae is a plant family that includes numerous species of high economic importance, e.g. mango, cashew, pistachio, and pink pepper as well as plants that are of local importance. Members of this family have been known as polyphenol-rich, however, this early view was based mainly on the results obtained using relatively basic analytical methods. During the past decades, tremendous progress has been made in analytical chemistry, which has led to new knowledge about the polyphenol composition of Anacardiaceae species. This review, covering 160 references, summarizes the most important literature on phenolic compounds present in edible species of the Anacardiaceae family. Structures of selected phenolic compounds are presented and chemotaxonomic aspects are discussed.