**1. Introduction**

Chile is a South American country bordered by Perú to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, and Argentina to the east. The continental Chilean territory is a long, narrow strip of land between the Andes in the east and the Pacific Ocean in the west. Its island territories include the Pacific

© 2016 The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. © 2017 The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

islands of Juan Fernández, Salas y Gómez, Desventuradas, and Pascua and Easter Island in Oceania [1, 2]. Due to its long surface and geographical location, Chile has a large range of different climates from tropical to polar, creating great diversity in its ecosystems and richness in its biodiversity [1–4]. This promotes better use of natural resources for improving the bioeconomy of the country [1, 3]. Traditionally, native Chilean fruits have been used as medicine by Chilean ethnic groups [5]. Currently, studies into native Chilean fruits have focused on identifying and defining their key compounds with medicinal effects [6]. Native Chilean species with edible fruits include woody or shrub forest species belonging to the Elaecarpaceae, Berberidaceae, and particularly Myrtaceae families (**Table 1**). These families are distributed from Illapel to Tierra del Fuego (**Figure 1**) and are species-rich in antioxidant and nutraceutical compounds with benefits to human health, including *Amomyrtus meli* (Meli) (**Figure 2**), *Aristotelia chilensis* (Maqui) (**Figure 3**), *Berberis microphylla* (Calafate) (**Figure 4**), *Luma apiculata* (Arrayán) (**Figure 5**), *Luma chequén* (Chequén) (**Figure 6**), and *Ugni molinae* (Murtilla) (**Figure 7**) [3, 7–11]. These species inhabit the Valdivian Evergreen Forest (Bosque siempreverde Valdiviano) and the Evergreen Patagonian Forest (Bosque siempreverde Patagónico) together with other Chilean forest species that have not been domesticated. Interestingly, Murtilla is the most domesticated among them [10, 12–16].


**Table 1.** Scientific and common name as well as families of the native Chilean fruits.

Scalbert et al. [17] and Lila et al. [18] reported a relationship between consumption of fruits with high antioxidant contents and a reduction in oxidative stress in humans. The richness and abundance of enzymatic and nonenzymatic antioxidants in plant species decrease the oxidative damage, helping to inhibit the formation of free radicals by several mechanisms: (1) inhibiting the initiation of the peroxidation, (2) preventing formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and (3) breaking the autoxidation chain reaction in humans [19–22]. ROS are normally produced in humans but are exacerbated under exogenous stresses (ozone, cigarette smoking, air pollutants, etc.) [23–27]. Chemical effectiveness of antioxidants against ROS is due to the protection of biomolecules such as lipids, proteins, and carbohydrates to prevent damage by oxidative stress in biomembranes. For this reason, it is very important that people consume antioxidant-rich fruits or foods to decrease ROS [28]. The human diseases associated with oxidative stress are the inflammatory process, cardiovascular disorders, and carcinogenesis (gastric and colorectal) [29–32]. Therefore, fruits with a high antioxidant power are of great benefit in disease prevention related with the inflammatory process and in particular associated with oxidative stress [6, 33–35].

Native Chilean Fruits and the Effects of Their Functional Compounds on Human Health http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/67067 101

**Figure 1.** Geographical distribution of native species in the forests of continental Chile.

islands of Juan Fernández, Salas y Gómez, Desventuradas, and Pascua and Easter Island in Oceania [1, 2]. Due to its long surface and geographical location, Chile has a large range of different climates from tropical to polar, creating great diversity in its ecosystems and richness in its biodiversity [1–4]. This promotes better use of natural resources for improving the bioeconomy of the country [1, 3]. Traditionally, native Chilean fruits have been used as medicine by Chilean ethnic groups [5]. Currently, studies into native Chilean fruits have focused on identifying and defining their key compounds with medicinal effects [6]. Native Chilean species with edible fruits include woody or shrub forest species belonging to the Elaecarpaceae, Berberidaceae, and particularly Myrtaceae families (**Table 1**). These families are distributed from Illapel to Tierra del Fuego (**Figure 1**) and are species-rich in antioxidant and nutraceutical compounds with benefits to human health, including *Amomyrtus meli* (Meli) (**Figure 2**), *Aristotelia chilensis* (Maqui) (**Figure 3**), *Berberis microphylla* (Calafate) (**Figure 4**), *Luma apiculata* (Arrayán) (**Figure 5**), *Luma chequén* (Chequén) (**Figure 6**), and *Ugni molinae* (Murtilla) (**Figure 7**) [3, 7–11]. These species inhabit the Valdivian Evergreen Forest (Bosque siempreverde Valdiviano) and the Evergreen Patagonian Forest (Bosque siempreverde Patagónico) together with other Chilean forest species that have not been domesticated. Interestingly, Murtilla is the most domesticated among them [10, 12–16].

Scalbert et al. [17] and Lila et al. [18] reported a relationship between consumption of fruits with high antioxidant contents and a reduction in oxidative stress in humans. The richness and abundance of enzymatic and nonenzymatic antioxidants in plant species decrease the oxidative damage, helping to inhibit the formation of free radicals by several mechanisms: (1) inhibiting the initiation of the peroxidation, (2) preventing formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and (3) breaking the autoxidation chain reaction in humans [19–22]. ROS are normally produced in humans but are exacerbated under exogenous stresses (ozone, cigarette smoking, air pollutants, etc.) [23–27]. Chemical effectiveness of antioxidants against ROS is due to the protection of biomolecules such as lipids, proteins, and carbohydrates to prevent damage by oxidative stress in biomembranes. For this reason, it is very important that people consume antioxidant-rich fruits or foods to decrease ROS [28]. The human diseases associated with oxidative stress are the inflammatory process, cardiovascular disorders, and carcinogenesis (gastric and colorectal) [29–32]. Therefore, fruits with a high antioxidant power are of great benefit in disease prevention related with the inflammatory process and in particular associated with oxidative stress [6, 33–35].

**Scientific name of plant species Common name Family References**

*Aristotelia chilensis* (Mol.) Stuntz. Maqui Elaeocarpaceae *Berberis microphylla* G. Forst. Calafate Berberidaceae

colorado, Temu

*Luma chequen* (Mol.) A. Gray. Arrayán Blanco, Chequén Myrtaceae *Ugni molinae* Turcz. Murtilla Myrtaceae

**Table 1.** Scientific and common name as well as families of the native Chilean fruits.

*Luma apiculata* (DC.) Burret. Arrayán, Arrayán rojo, Luma, Palo

100 Superfood and Functional Food - An Overview of Their Processing and Utilization

Meli Myrtaceae [39, 54]

Myrtaceae

*Amomyrtus meli* (Phil.) D. Legrand &

Kausel.

**Figure 2.** Pictures of *Amomyrtus meli* (Meli): tree (A), leaves (B), and flowers (C). Extracted from Donoso [40].

**Figure 3.** Pictures of *Aristotelia chilensis* (Maqui): tree (A), leaves (B), and fruits (C).

**Figure 4.** Pictures of *Berberis microphylla* (Calafate): flowers (A), fruits (B) and composed pictures of fruits, leaves, and thorns (C).

**Figure 5.** Pictures of *Luma apiculata* (Arrayán): tree (A), leaves (B), and fruits (C). The picture was replaced by an our picture.

**Figure 6.** Pictures of *Luma chequen* (Chequén): tree (A), leaves (B), and immature fruits (C).

**Figure 3.** Pictures of *Aristotelia chilensis* (Maqui): tree (A), leaves (B), and fruits (C).

102 Superfood and Functional Food - An Overview of Their Processing and Utilization

thorns (C).

picture.

**Figure 4.** Pictures of *Berberis microphylla* (Calafate): flowers (A), fruits (B) and composed pictures of fruits, leaves, and

**Figure 5.** Pictures of *Luma apiculata* (Arrayán): tree (A), leaves (B), and fruits (C). The picture was replaced by an our

**Figure 7.** Pictures of *Ugni molinae* (Murtilla): tree (A), flowers (B), and fruits (C).

Regarding native fruits rich in antioxidants and other bioactive compounds, it is important to detect the quality and quantity of the compounds responsible for the health beneficial properties [36–38]. In this context, the aim of this review is to associate the main bioactive compounds, antioxidant activity, and content of individual phenolic compounds of some native Chilean fruits such as Arrayán (**Figure 5**), Calafate (**Figure 4**), Chequén (**Figure 6**), Maqui (**Figure 3**), Meli (**Figure 2**), and Murtilla (**Figure 7**) with the prevention of diseases and pathophysiological disorders in humans.
