ABSTRACT
This chapter provides information on the uses, folk medicine, chemistry, germplasm, distribution, ecology, cultivation, harvesting, yields, energy, and biotic factors of Brazil Nut. Nutritious Brazil nuts are eaten raw, salted, or roasted. Seeds are consumed in large quantities and are used in international trade. Kernels are the source of Brazil nut oil, used for edible purposes and in the manufacture of soap. Hexane-extracted high-Se Brazil nut meal in a corn-based diet fed to rats produced toxicity similar to that obtained from seleniferous corn, selenomethionine, or sodium selenite as assessed by weight gain, visually scored liver damage and liver, kidney, and spleen weights. Brazil nuts are collected from wild trees and are nowhere cultivated for commercial production. The following fungi are known to attack this tree: actinomyces brasiliensis, aspergillus flavus, cephalosporium bertholletianum, cercospora bertholletiae, cunninghamella bertholletiae, piptocephalus sphaerocephala, phomopsis bertholletianum, and thamnidium elegans.
