Soursop (Annona muricata L., Annonaceae) is a neotropical fruit species producing large fruits that can be
consumed fresh and mainly processed. While the leaves, roots and stems of this species have been the subject
of reiterated phytochemical studies, their fruits have received less attention. Phenolic compounds were extracted
from the pulp of ripe soursop fruits and separated into two fractions by solid phase extraction. The first was
eluted with water and HCl (0.01%), while the second was obtained with ethyl acetate. Their characterization
was conducted with high-performance liquid chromatography with diode array and electrospray ionization
mass spectrometric detection. The analytical system allowed the separation and tentative identification of 16
phenolic compounds, mainly based on MS fragmentation patterns. Prevalent compounds were a cinnamic acid
derivative and p-coumaric acid, together with several other minor compounds that may have health benefits
due to antioxidant characteristics. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study on the phenolic composition
of soursop fruit pulp based on a mass spectrometric method.
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