Influence of cooking on the neuroprotective properties of pepper (bird pepper and cayenne pepper) varieties in scopolamine‐induced neurotoxicity in rats

Abstract

This study investigated the influence of cooking on the neuroprotective property of two pepper varieties in the rat model of amnesia. Rats were pre-treated with dietary inclusions of 2% Bird pepper (BP) and Cayenne pepper (CP) (raw and cooked [for 30 min at 100 ± 0.5°C]) for 21 days, after which neurotoxicity was induced by scopolamine. Thereafter, the spatial working memory of the rats was evaluated, and the brain tissue was assayed for the activities of acetylcholinesterase and ecto-nucleotidases, as well as lipid peroxidation. Furthermore, the ascorbic acid, carotenoid, and capsinoid levels of the peppers were determined. The result showed that dietary inclusions of BP and CP significantly ameliorated behavioral and biochemical impairments induced by scopolamine in rats; however, cooked peppers showed no significant difference compared to raw. Furthermore, the bioactive contents were preserved by cooking. This study, therefore, revealed that the neuroprotective effects of the peeper varieties were conserved by cooking. Novelty Impact Statement Cooking is one of the culinary practices used in food processing and preservation. This method often produces varying effects on the bioactive constituents of functional foods, hence, it is important to consider. Pepper varieties have been reported for their neuroprotective properties, but with a dearth of information on how culinary practices could affect this therapeutic effect. Therefore, in this study, we investigated the influence of cooking, one of the main culinary practices of pepper varieties, on some behavioral and biochemical indices in scopolamine neurotoxic rats.