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Natural Home Cures · Mangosteen science

Manganese
& Mangosteen

Manganese: Supporting Enzymes, Bone Formation and Cellular Defenses

Enzymes · Bone formation
Explore the science ↓
Editorial illustration: Whole grains and a trace mineral.
A familiar food connectionWhole grains and a trace mineral.Whole grains are among the dietary sources of manganese.

Manganese is needed in small amounts to help enzymes work. It supports human nutrition and also takes part in the plant process that releases oxygen during photosynthesis.

MnManganese
An essential trace mineral

01 · Begin with the essentials

What Is a Trace Mineral?

Manganese is a trace mineral, meaning the body needs only a small amount. It helps enzymes carry out reactions involved in using nutrients, forming bone and maintaining antioxidant defenses.(1)

02 · What does manganese do?

How the Body Uses Manganese

Conceptual folded protein with a metal helper in a pocket, illustrating an enzyme cofactor

Helps the body use nutrients.

Manganese helps enzymes process carbohydrates, amino acids and cholesterol so the body can use them.(1)

Conceptual bone cutaway showing compact bone and the spongy trabecular interior

Contribute to bone formation.

Normal bone formation is another part of manganese’s enzyme-related work.(1)

Conceptual mitochondrion with folded inner membranes

Support antioxidant defenses.

Inside mitochondria, the structures that help cells produce energy, an enzyme called manganese superoxide dismutase, or MnSOD, helps manage reactive molecules formed during normal metabolism.(1)

Nutrition in focus

The Connection with Connective Tissue

Manganese helps an enzyme called prolidase work. This enzyme helps supply an amino acid used to make collagen, a structural protein in skin and other tissues. This is one way manganese participates in the normal maintenance and repair of connective tissue.(4)

Manganese is present in many familiar plant foods.

03 · Everyday food sources

Manganese on the Table.

Whole grains, nuts, legumes and leafy vegetables are established food sources.(1)

Illustrative food photograph of oats, brown rice and wholegrain bread

Whole grains

Oats, brown rice and wholegrain bread

Illustrative food photograph of almonds, cashews and pumpkin seeds

Nuts & seeds

Plant foods that contribute manganese

Illustrative food photograph of lentils and chickpeas in ceramic bowls

Beans & lentils

Chickpeas, lentils and other legumes

Illustrative food photograph of fresh spinach and kale

Leafy greens

Spinach and other leafy vegetables

Plants use manganese for a very different task: releasing oxygen from water.

Illustrative sunlight illuminating the veins of a glossy green mangosteen leaf

04 · Inside the living plant

How Plants Release Oxygen

During photosynthesis, plants split water and release oxygen. A tiny cluster containing manganese and calcium helps this reaction happen inside a system called photosystem II.(3)

The oxygen connection

Four Manganese Atoms and One Calcium Atom

Metal composition—not the atomic arrangement or complete structure.

Simplified process diagram; other reaction products and steps are omitted.

Researchers have also measured manganese directly in mangosteen pericarp.

05 · Manganese in mangosteen

Manganese Measured in Mangosteen Pericarp

0.072

mg per 100 g dry matter

Pericarp result reported as 0.072 ± 0.002 in a 2026 study.(2)

Which part was measured?

Researchers tested leaves, pericarp, seeds and pulp separately. They reported the manganese content of dried pericarp.(2)

What does dry matter mean?

Dry matter means the plant material without its water. The result is reported for 100 grams of that dry material.

Natural Home Cures mangosteen capsule bottle and fruit on sunlit limestone

06 · From fruit to product

Mangosteen Pericarp, Freeze-Dried

Our Freeze-Dried Rich Pericarp Mangosteen Capsules begin with the thick outer pericarp of Garcinia mangostana.

After harvest, the pericarp is freeze-dried and prepared for capsules. This uses the pericarp as a whole ingredient.

Explore our mangosteen →
The research behind this article

Source References

4 sources Show referencesHide references
  1. 01
    Nutrition referenceManganese: Fact Sheet for Health Professionals.

    National Institutes of Health, Office of Dietary Supplements.

    Full citation
    National Institutes of Health, Office of Dietary Supplements. Manganese: Fact Sheet for Health Professionals.
    View source
  2. 02
    Pericarp composition studyWilcaso et al. (2026): Mineral composition of mangosteen tissues

    Plant Foods for Human Nutrition 81:127 · Table 2, dry-matter basis.

    View source ↗
  3. 03
    Research referenceWater oxidation chemistry of photosystem II. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B 357:1395–1404.

    Vrettos & Brudvig (2002)

    Full citation
    Vrettos & Brudvig (2002). Water oxidation chemistry of photosystem II. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B 357:1395–1404.
    View source
  4. 04
    Nutrition researchOregon State University, Linus Pauling Institute: Manganese
    View source ↗