Description

Annona muricata, soursop or graviola, is a tropical evergreen tree of the family Annonaceae, native to the Caribbean lowlands and Central American tropical forests, introduced to India via Portuguese trade networks in the 16th century and now cultivated across the coastal regions of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and the Konkan coast. The tree produces large, irregularly shaped, spiny green fruit with intensely aromatic, white, custard-like flesh. The dark green, glossy leaves contain a diverse range of annonaceous acetogenins — particularly annonacin — that have attracted substantial phytochemical research and ethnobotanical documentation across Caribbean, Latin American, and Asian traditional medicine systems for their biological activity profiles. In South Asian traditional practice, soursop leaves are incorporated in preparations associated with metabolic health and blood-related conditions. India imports dried leaves primarily from Southeast Asia and South America.