Salak

Other names : Salacca zalacca, Calamus zalacca, Salacca edulis, Salacca rumphii, Salacca blumeana, Calamus salakka, Salacca edulis var. amboinensis, Salacca zalacca var. amboinensis, Snake fruit
Being native to South Sumatra and Southwest Java, it is widely distributed around Southeast Asian countries, including Malaysia, Thailand, and Myanmar in abundance. The fruit has also been introduced to countries of other regions including New Guinea, Philippines, Queensland and northern Territory of Australia, Ponape Island (Caroline Archipelago), China, Surinam, Spain, and Fiji.

Health Benefits and Uses of Salak

The abundant natural sugar and fibre along with minerals and vitamin makes it a nutritious fruit. Phytochemical investigation on this fruit has revealed the presence of flavonoids, phenolics, glycosides as well as some volatile and aromatic compounds, including gallic acid, quercetin, chlorogenic acid, epicatechin, proanthocyanidins, lycopene and β-carotene. Pharmacological studies on the fruit flesh and peel have shown some tremendous antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticancer and antidiabetic potential.

• Antioxidant : Zalacca fruits are a good source of vitamins, fibre, minerals, and carbohydrates. Moreover, S. zalacca possesses antioxidant, anticancer, and antidiabetic effects, attributable to their high levels of vitamin C, Phenolics acids, and flavonoids. Apart from the pulp, the peel of salak fruit has been reported to possess various polyphenols that are responsible for its antioxidant activity.
• Diabetes : Vinegar prepared from fruits of different variants of Salacca further showed significant results with improved lipid profile and controlled glucose level along with potential capability of the Swaru Salacca vinegar to regenerate damaged pancreatic cells in the STZ-induced rats. Vinegar produced using the snake fruit showed effective action in regulating the blood glucose level thus reducing the glycaemic index in the treated diabetic subjects. The antioxidants and acetic acid present in the vinegar exhibited the antidiabetic potential of the snake fruit vinegar through regenerating the pancreatic beta cells and regulating the lipid profile
• Antihyperuricemic potential
• Cancer : the salak fruit has been found to exhibit an anticancer effect against human lung cancer (A549), human hepatoma (HepG2), human colon cancer (HT-29), and human breast cancer (MCF-7) cell lines. The antiproliferative effect of salak pulp, peel, and seed extracts were significant on all cell lines. The two compounds isolated from the Salacca fruit (S. sedulis) were pyrolle-2,4-dicarboxylic acid-methyl ester and 3-hydroxystigmastan- 5(6)-en (β-sitosterol).
• Cytotoxicity : The salak fruit extract has been analysed for its cytotoxicity level against Vero cells and normal human fibroblast (NHF) cell line correlated to its antioxidant capacity. The Vero cells showed non-cytotoxic effect at 50 μg/mL concentration. Meanwhile, the cytotoxicity of salak fruit extract in NHF cell line was based on the biosynthesis of collagen and elastin, fibres in NHF cells function in the elasticity and firming.
• The salak fruit is also used in the making of fruit tea with combination of other local fruits (pineapple and longan) and hed krang (Schizophyllum commune) as the main ingredient.

References

• https://www.researchgate.net/publication/329928302_Salacca_zalacca_A_short_review_of_the_palm_botany_pharmacological_uses_and_phytochemistry
• https://www.apjtm.org/article.asp?issn=1995-7645;year=2018;volume=11;issue=12;spage=645;epage=652;aulast=Saleh
• Lasekan O, Abbas KA. distinctive exotic flavor and aroma compounds of some exotic tropical fruits and berries: a review. Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr 2012; 52(8): 726-735.
• Kanlayavattanakul M, Lourith N, Ospondpant D, Ruktanonchai U, Pongpunyayuen S, Chansriniyom C. Salak plum peel extract as a safe and efficient antioxidant appraisal for Cosmetics. Biosci Biotechnol Biochem 2013; 77(5): 1068-1074.
• Khonsarn N, Lawan, S. Level of xanthophyll, lutein and zeaxanthin in selected Thai fruits determined by HPLC. Int Proc Chem 2012; 39: 240-243.
• Alam MN, Bristi NJ, Rafiquzzaman M. Review on in vivo and in vitro methods evaluation of antioxidant activity. Saudi Pharm J 2013; 21(2): 143-152.
• Ikram EHK, Eng KH, Jalil AMM, Ismail A, Idris S, Azlan A, et al. Antioxidant capacity and total phenolic content of Malaysian underutilized fruits. J Food Compos Anal 2009; 22(5): 388-393.
• Tilaar A, Ranti AM. The efficacy study of snake fruit (Salacca edulis Reinw Var. Bongkok) extract as skin lightening agent. Pharmacogn J 2017: 9(2): 235-238.
• Zubaidah E, Ichromasari DY, Mandasari OK. Effect of Salacca vinegar var. suwaru on lipid profile diabetic rats. Food Nutr Sci 2014; 5(9): 743-748.
• Haruenkit R, Poovarodom S, Leontowicz H, Leontowicz M, Sajewicz M, Kowalska T, et al. Comparative study of health properties and nutritional value of durian, mangosteen, and snake fruit: experiments in vitro and in vivo. J Agric Food Chem 2007; 55(14): 5842-5849.
• Zubaidah E, Putri WDR, Puspitasari T, Kalsum U, Dianawati D. The effectiveness of various valacca vinegars as therapeutic agent for management of hyperglycemia and dyslipidemia on diabetic rats. Int J Food Sci 2017; 1: 1-7.
• Saleh MSM, Siddiqui MJ, So’ad MZS, Roheem FO, Saidi-Besbes S, Khatib A. Correlation of FT-IR fingerprint and α-glucosidase inhibitory activity of Salak (Salacca zalacca) fruit extracts utilizing orthogonal partial least square. Molecules 2018; 23: 6.
• Azmi SMN, Jamal P, Amid A. Xanthine oxidase inhibitory activity from potential Malaysian medicinal plant as remedies for gout. Int Food Res J 2012; 19(1): 159-165.
• Priyatno LHA, Sukandar EY, Ibrahim S, Adnyana Ik. Antihyperuricemic effect of ethanol extract of snake fruit (Salacca edulis Reinw) var. Bongkok on wistar male rat. J Food Sci Eng 2012; 2: 271-276.
• Li F, Li S, Li HB, Deng GF, Ling WH, Wu S, Chen F. Antiproliferative activity of peels, pulps and seeds of 61 fruits. J Funct Foods 2013; 5(3): 1298-1309.
• Ma’Aruf AG, Asyikeen ZN, Sahilah AM, Khan AM. Leavening ability of yeast isolated from different local fruits in bakery product. Sains Malays 2011; 40(12): 1413-1419.
• Mongkontanawat, N. Product development of fruit tea mixed with ‘Hed krang’ (Schizophyllum commune). J Agric Technol 2013; 9(7): 1665-1676.