Passiflora cincinnata Mast.: a comprehensive review of fruit aspects relevant to the food industry

Passiflora cincinnata Mast., a species native to the Brazilian Cerrado and Caatinga biomes, remains underexplored industrially, and existing information on its fruits is fragmented in the literature. This review provides a critical synthesis of available studies, covering physicochemical, proximate, and phytochemical characteristics, as well as bioactivities and potential food applications. The studies were selected through analysis of titles, keywords, and abstracts in the Scopus and Google Scholar databases, without time restrictions. The pulp is the most investigated part, slightly sweet (∼11 °Brix), acidic (pH < 3.0), rich in citric (6.85 g/100 g) and ascorbic acids (13 – 23 mg/100 g), flavonoids, and phenolic acids with antioxidant potential. These characteristics justify their use in juices, desserts, and fermented beverages. The peel exhibits high levels of pectin (∼7 %), vitamin C (28.07 mg/100 g), and phenolic compounds (19.94 mg GAE/100 g), while the seeds are notable for their lipid content, dominated by linoleic acid (∼75 %), and antioxidant activity (77.5 % DPPH inhibition). However, important research gaps remain, mainly regarding the limited chemical characterization of the peel and seeds and their restricted investigation to flour and oil production, poor geographic representativeness of samples and the lack of studies on processing effects and compound bioavailability.