Capsaicin Content Research Articles

Host utilization by the pepper weevil (Anthonomus eugenii): suitability, preference and offspring performance.

Host plant selection is a key factor affecting the survival, population establishment, and spread of herbivorous insect pests. The pepper weevil is one of the most important pests of cultivated pepper in North America with a capacity to rapidly expand its geographic range, in part through its ability to switch between cultivated and wild Solanaceous host plants. Towards a better management of this pest, this study examined metrics of pepper weevil host use including oviposition preference, development time, and successful offspring emergence on wild Solanaceous species and cultivated pepper cultivars. Pepper weevil successfully developed within fruit of several Solanaceous species including eastern black (Solanum ptycanthum) and climbing nightshade (S. dulcamara), in which development time was on average 4 days faster relative to Capsicum annuum cv. jalapeno peppers. Oviposition events occurred in all fruit types assessed and no strong host preference was detected among these. However, the number of emerged offspring was significantly lower than the number of oviposition events in C. chinense cv. habanero pepper fruit. Although not all nightshade species are suitable hosts for pepper weevil development, those permissive to offspring production do allow for faster development than in C. annuum peppers. While host preference was not detected among fruit types tested, low offspring emergence from fruit with high capsaicin content suggests a reduced ability of pepper weevil to tolerate high concentrations of this metabolite. These findings help elucidate the factors influencing pepper weevil bionomics, and their implications on pepper weevil management are discussed. Published 2021. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.

Effect of pretreatments and temperature on rehydration kinetics of naga chili (Capsicum chinense)

Naga chili (Capsicum chinense) is rich in capsaicin content that provides a distinctive aroma and strong pungency. Drying with pretreatment is regarded as a cost-effective approach to retain better nutrient quality, whereas rehydration properties consider a quality index to optimize the drying conditions. This study aimed to determine rehydration kinetics and rehydration characteristics of pretreated hot-air dried Naga chili. The pretreatment was consisting of water blanching (90°C for 5 mins), steam blanching (100° C for 1 min), microwave treatment (650 W for 100 s), and dipping into sugar 70°Bx, 0.5% citric acid, 2% ethyl oleate + 3% potassium carbonate, and 2% potassium meta bi-sulfite solution. After drying at 60°C, the rehydration was done at 25°C, 50°C, and 75°C, respectively. The rehydration kinetics were evaluated by fitting the experimental data into empirical kinetic models: Peleg's model, 2nd order, 1st order, and Zero-order kinetics. Among these models, the rehydration behavior was best described by Peleg's model, where the highest R2 (0.9964), lowest χ 2 (0.0001) and RMSE (0.0064) values were obtained. Different rehydration characteristics such as moisture content, equilibrium moisture content, rehydration ratios were also determined. The highest moisture content (8.10 g moisture/g dry sample) was found at higher rehydration temperature (75°C), whereas the lowest moisture content ranges were recorded at 25°C. After moisture contents got equilibrium, the rehydrated samples gain weight to 100.15% at 75°C in comparison to the untreated samples. The rehydration ratios were also getting higher with increasing rehydration temperatures.

Determination of capsaicin in hot peppers (Capsicum spp.) by direct analysis in real time (DART) method

In this study, 46 different cultivars of chilli peppers and their seeds were analysed. Capsaicin, the alkaloid responsible for the pungency of chilli peppers, was first analysed with the optimised direct analysis in real time (DART) and time of flight mass spectrometry (TOF-MS) method, and the capsaicin content values obtained were compared with those obtained from the high-performance liquid chromatography with diode array detection (HPLC–DAD) method. The correlation coefficient values for the DART–TOF-MS method with the HPLC–DAD method were R2 = 0.845 for the pulp of chilli peppers and R2 = 0.776 for the chilli pepper seeds. The optimised DART–TOF-MS method was evaluated as a suitable tool for rapidly distinguishing between chilli peppers and their seeds based on pungency and capsaicin content. The obtained mass spectral data were statistically evaluated by principal component analysis (PCA), and the individual types of chilli peppers were distinguished by their varying pungency, based on choosing selected specific m/z values for the capsaicin compound.

Effect of Drought Stress on Capsaicin and Antioxidant Contents in Pepper Genotypes at Reproductive Stage.

Pepper is one of the most important vegetables and spices in the world. Principal pungency is contributed by secondary metabolites called capsaicinoids, mainly synthesized in the placenta of pepper fruit. Various factors, including drought, limit pepper production. Flowering is one of the most sensitive stages affected by drought stress. The current study was conducted to determine the effect of drought on different pepper genotypes at the flowering and pod formation stages. Hot pepper (Pusajuala and Ghotki) and Bell pepper (Green Wonder and PPE-311) genotypes were subjected to drought (35% field capacity) at two different stages (flowering (DF) and pod formation (DP) stage). In comparison, control plants were maintained at 65% field capacity. The data regarding flowering survival rates, antioxidant protein activity, and proline content, were collected. Results indicated that parameters like flower survival percentage, number of fruits per plant, and fruit weight had significant differences among the genotypes in both treatments. A high proline level was observed in Green Wonder at the pod formation stage compared to other genotypes. Capsaicin contents of hot pepper genotypes were affected at the pod formation stage. Antioxidants like GPX were highly active (190 units) in Ghotki at pod formation. Bell pepper genotypes had a high APX activity, highly observed (100 units) in PPE-311 at pod formation, and significantly differ from hot pepper genotypes. In the catalase case, all the genotypes had the highest values in DP compared to control and DF, but Pusajuala (91 units) and Green Wonder (83 units) performed best compared to other genotypes. Overall, the results indicate that drought stress decreased reproductive growth parameters and pungency of pepper fruit as most of the plant energy was consumed in defense molecules (antioxidants). Therefore, water availability at the flowering and pod formation stage is critical to ensure good yield and pepper quality.

Influence of soil quality factors on capsaicin biosynthesis, pungency, yield, and produce quality of chili: An insight on Csy1, Pun1, and Pun12 signaling responses

Hotness or pungency is the major trait of genetically diverse and economically valuable chili (Capsicum sp.) cultivars. However, little is known about the influence of soil characteristics on genetic regulation of pungency vis-à-vis capsaicin formation in endemic chilies. Hence, the present work was conducted by growing two endemic chili cultivars in two types (alluvial and lateritic) of soil. Capsaicin content, pungency, and capsaicin synthase activity were significantly greater in chilies grown in alluvial soil than in lateritic soil. Correspondingly, Csy1, the gene that encodes capsaicin synthase, was significantly upregulated in alluvial soil grown plants. Interestingly, upregulation of Pun1, the gene responsible for capsaicin accumulation in fruits, was more in lateritic soil than in alluvial soil; but pungency was inhibited in lateritic soil by the overexpression of Pun12, a recessive allele of Pun1 locus. Statistical analyses revealed that high organic C, microbial activity, and NPK status in alluvial soil were responsible for high pungency, capsaicin synthase activity, capsaicin accumulation, and suppression of Pun12. Fruit yield, dry matter, crude protein, titratable acidity, and soluble solids were also significantly high in chilies grown in alluvial soil. Therefore, we postulate that soil quality attributes play vital roles in genetic regulation of pungency, capsaicin biosynthesis, fruit yield, and produce quality of endemic chili cultivars.

Effect of hydric stress-related acoustic emission on transcriptional and biochemical changes associated with a water deficit in Capsicum annuum L

At specific vibration frequencies like ones generated by insects such as caterpillar chewing and bee's buzz-pollination turn on the plants secondary metabolism and their respective pathways gets activated. Thus, studies report that vibrations and sound waves applied to plants improves their fitness performance. Commonly, acoustic treatments for plants have used arbitrarily random frequencies. In this work, a group of signals obtained from hydric-stressed plants was recorded as vibrational patterns using a laser vibrometer. These vibration-signals were classified as representative of each condition and then externally applied as Acoustic Emission Patterns (AEP). The present research hypothesized that specific vibration frequencies could “emulate” a plant signal through mechanical energy based on tplant's ability to recognize vibration pattern similarity to a hydric status. This investigation aimed to apply the AEP's as characteristic vibrations classified as Low hydric stress (LHS), medium hydric stress (MHS), and high hydric stress (HHS) to evaluate their effect on healthy-well watered plants at two developmental stages.In the vegetative stage, the gene expression related to antioxidant and hydric stress responses was assessed. The LHS, MHS, and HHS acoustic treatments up-regulated the peroxidase (Pod) (~2.8, 1.9, and 3.6-fold change, respectively). The superoxide dismutase (Mn-sod) and phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (Pal) genes were up-regulated by HHS (~0.23 and ~0.55-fold change, respectively) and, the chalcone synthase (Chs) gene was induced by MHS (~0.63-fold-change). At the fructification stage, the MHS treatment induced a significant increase in Capsaicin content (5.88-fold change), probably through the at3and kas gene activation. Findings are correlated for a better understanding of plant responses to different multi frequency-signals tones from vibrations with potential for agricultural applications.

Effect of organic manures as INM component on growth and yield of chilli (Capsicum annuum L.)

A field experiment was conducted during rabi season of 2019 at farmer’s field in Panruti near Cuddalore district (Tamil Nadu) to study effect of organic manures as INM component on growth, yield and quality of chilli (Capsicum annuum L.) in a randomized block design. The treatments consisted of recommended dose of fertilizers at two levels (160:60:30 and 120:45:22.5 kg NPK ha-1) and organic manures (20 t FYM ha-1, 50 kg Bio ash ha-1, 5 t press mud granules ha-1, 20 kg Sea weed extract granules ha-1 and 5 t neem cake ha-1) and replicated three times. The growth and yield parameters of chilli were significantly influenced due to application of organic manures. Among the treatments, 75% RDF + 20 t FYM + 20 kg Sea weed extract granules + 5 t neem cake ha-1 (T8) exhibited better performances of growth and yield parameters of chilli cv. Indus 13. The maximum values of growth parameters such as plant height, leaves plant-1, branches plant-1, canopy volume, chlorophyll content in the leaves and net photosynthetic rate were observed in this treatment (T8). The yield parameters such as days to first flowering, days to 50% flowering, flowers plant-1, fruit set, fruits plant-1, fruit length, fruit girth, pericarp thickness, pulp seed ratio, single fruit weight, total fruit yield (28.18 t ha-1) and quality parameters like capsaicin content (0.76%) and ascorbic acid content (171.3 mg g-1) were highest in this treatment (T8) suggested this is the best integrated nutrient management combination for chilli. Application of 100% RDF (160 : 30 : 30 kg ha-1) proved inferior in respect of growth and yield of chilli.

Influence of visual appearance on consumer perception of spiciness in kimchi

AbstractThe objective of this study was to determine the effect of appearance on consumer perception of spiciness in kimchi. Three kimchi samples with different levels of red pepper powder (1.5, 3, 6%; K1, K2, K3) were prepared. A 2‐day consumer testing was conducted with 2 weeks interval and participants (n = 108) evaluated kimchi with (Day 1) and without (Day 2) blindfold. Day 1 experiment was conducted without providing appearance about the kimchi sample by covering the eyes of the participants using the eye patch, and Day 2 experiment was conducted by allowing the participants to see and evaluate the kimchi sample directly without covering their eyes and evaluated. When evaluated with blindfold, no differences were observed in all liking attributes (p > .05) except for overall liking score, indicating decreased sensitivities without appearance. When evaluated without blindfold, K1 received lowest appearance and color liking scores than other samples (p < .05). Regarding spiciness liking, interaction between sample and evaluation condition was observed in which spiciness liking of K1 was lower in informed condition in comparison to blind evaluation (p < .05), while spiciness liking of other samples was higher under informed condition. Appearance‐related attributes such as color of kimchi may influence the overall and spiciness perception of kimchi. Finding from this study emphasizes the importance of appearance on consumer acceptability of spiciness in kimchi. Therefore, the results of this study will be able to identify the color and the amount of red pepper powder that consumers prefer and be used in manufacturing.Practical applicationsSpiciness is one of the key sensory characteristics in kimchi, and capsaicin in red pepper powder as part of ingredient is responsible for spiciness. However, measuring pungent spiciness in kimchi is heavily dependent on instrumental analysis of capsaicin content; therefore, consideration on human perception on spiciness in complex food matrix was not fully considered. This study focused on consumer perception on spiciness in kimchi in different evaluation condition and found that the appearance may influence consumer perception of pungent spiciness in kimchi. Finding from this study suggests the importance of human factors in evaluation of pungent spiciness in kimchi.

Water restriction during the vegetative and reproductive stages of Capsicum annuum var. glabriusculum, and its effect on growth, secondary metabolites and fruit yield

The fruits of Capsicum annuum var. glabriusculum, due to their culinary use, have a high market demand in southeastern Mexico. The obtained product is the result of the abiotic and biotic conditions that this species faces during its development and production under wild conditions because its cultivation has not yet been established. To advance the knowledge of the response of this chili to abiotic factors, the growth, secondary metabolite concentrations and yields of plants subjected to water deficit (WD) were evaluated during two phenological stages: vegetative and reproductive (flowering and fruiting). Two independent experiments were established, each under a completely randomized design with a 2 × 4 factorial arrangement. The treatments were a) with and without WD during the vegetative stage (VS) and b) with and without WD during the reproductive stage (RS). Each treatment comprised groups of 20 plants and had four sampling dates. The results showed that the application of WD during the VS affected the growth, accumulation of biomass, leaf area, and duration of the phenological stages of this species. During the VS, WD decreased the number and weight of plant−1 fruits (60.9 and 59.4 %, respectively) compared to the treatment without WD. In both stages, the proline content in leaves increased (93.9–100%) with WD. The concentrations of photosynthetic pigments, phenolic compounds and total flavonoids in leaves and the contents of capsaicin and dihydrocapsaicin in fruits were not affected by WD in either the VS or RS. In general, this species is more sensitive to WD applied during the VS than the RS.

Nutritional Assessment of Indonesian Chilli Landraces (Capsicum chinense Jaqc.)

Chillies (Capsicum spp.) are highly nutritious vegetables and spices and are an important component in the Asian cuisine due to their aroma attributes and health value. To gain a better insight of the health value of chillies in North Toraja, South Sulawesi, Indonesia, the nutrient content, the morphological parameters and the yield of three different chilli landraces of the variety ‘Katokkon’ (Capsicum chinense Jaqc.), i.e. ‘Limbong Sampolo’, ‘Leatung 1’, and ‘Leatung 2’ were investigated. The nutrient parameters included capsaicin, pro-vitamin A, and vitamin C contents. Moreover, those differences were studied in two villages (Buntu Datu and To’pao) for the landrace ‘Leatung 2’. The research was performed with dried chillies using high pressure thin layer chromatography for the determination of capsaicin content, spectrophotometric determination for pro-vitamin A and iodometry for vitamin C content. The results showed that the capsaicin content varied between 7.91 mg/g DM (‘Leatung 1’) to 9.94 mg/g DM (‘Limbong Sampolo’) which corresponds with values on the Scoville heat unit (SHU) ranging from 118,712.677 to 149,074.747. The pro-vitamin A content was found to be highest (1.01 mg/g DM) in ‘Limbong Sampolo’ and lowest (0.60 mg/g DM) in ‘Leatung 2’ from To’pao. Vitamin C was found to be lowest (0.20 mg/g DM) in ‘Leatung 2’ from Buntu Datu and highest (0.26 mg/g DM) in ‘Leatung 1’. The statistical analysis showed that there were no significant differences between the landraces and the villages for ‘Leatung 2’. Compared to the capsaicin values in literature (up to SHU 600,000), the landraces showed lower values. This was also found for the pro-vitamin A contents. In contrast, the vitamin C values were higher than those reported in literature. In conclusion, it can be stated, that the three landraces of ‘Katokkon’ in general showed high nutritious values, irrespectively of the different growing conditions in the two villages.

Antioxidant activity of thirty-six peppers varieties and vasorelaxant of selected varieties

Peppers are consumed all over the world, have several benefits to human health, such as antioxidant properties that can prevent diseases related to free radicals such as cardiovascular, inflammatory diseases, cancer, among others. This work aimed to evaluate the antioxidant capacity (AOC) of 36 varieties of peppers through ABTS and DPPH radical scavenging, electroanalytical assays, and to verify the vasorelaxant properties of selected samples. The greater the amount of capsaicin found in the extracts, the higher the AOC the greater the vasorelaxation. Naga had the highest scoring for antioxidant capacity, pout showed the lowest antioxidant capacity, vase pyramid intermediate level, whereas the capsaicin content followed the same trend. Extracts from all pepper varieties studied presented vasorelaxant properties in independent and dependent endothelial pathways.

Biochemical variances through metabolomic profile analysis of Capsicum chinense Jacq. during fruit development

Abstract Capsicum chinense Jacq. is classified under the Solanaceae family, which is an extensively consumed spice and vegetable globally. Therefore, to gain more knowledge and insight into the diversity of Capsicum chinense Jacq. metabolites, a total of 18 placental tissues from various development stages were collected and untargeted metabolomics was conducted by means of ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC) and mass spectrometry (MS). Principal component analysis (PCA) analysis established the existence of distinct metabolite distribution patterns as observed at 16 days post anthesis (DPA), compared with the metabolites at 36 and 48 DPA groups, whereas there was a difference in metabolites between the orange ripening period (B) and the red ripening period (C), which intersected with each other. Furthermore, several pathways including metabolic pathways, biosynthesis of phenylpropanoids, ABC transporters, alanine, aspartate and glutamate metabolism, fatty acid biosynthesis, pentose and glucoronate pathways, secondary metabolites biosynthesis, cutin, biosynthesis of suberine and wax were significantly enriched across the fruit ripening stages. The capsaicin content was observed to be less in the early ripening stages, but gradually increased to a high concentration during the late ripening stages. In conclusion, our study findings submit a suitable approach for interpreting the biochemical variances of non-targeted metabolomics in hot pepper developmental stages, as well as offer new findings that can be applied in the development strategies in breeding of Capsicum chinense Jacq.

Increasing the Growth and Development of Chili-Pepper Under Three Different Shading Condition in Response to Biofertilizers Application

Biological agents such as rhizosphere bacteria and Vesicular Arbuscular Mycorrhiza (VAM) are potential agents to improve soil qualities. In addition, species and varieties of crops give different response to the shading related to their growth and development. The research aimed to determine the effect of biofertilizer application under different levels of shading conditions on the growth and capsaicin content of Capsicum frutescens L. and evaluate the suitable levels of shading. The research was conducted from February to June 2019 at Universitas Brawijaya. Bhaskara variety was chosen in this research. Thirteen treatments and three replications were arranged in the randomized design with nest pattern (Nested). The treatments were a combination between the shading level and biofertilizers. The dry weight, nutrient content, fresh weight and capsaicin content were observed. The results showed the application of biofertilizers consisted of PGPR and VAM consortium, under the lowest shading condition (25%) increased the total dry weight of chili, the nutrients absorption, and the capsaicin content. The capsaicin content is influenced by the fruit weight of chili and plant nitrogen uptake. Biofertilizers and the lowest shading conditions contribute to supporting the growth and development of chili pepper.

Capsaicin Acts Through Reducing P38 MAPK-Dependent Thymidylate Synthase Expression to Enhance 5-Fluorouracil-Induced Cytotoxicity in Human Lung Cancer Cells

Capsaicin, an ingredient of green and red bell peppers, shows anticancer activity in several malignant cell lines. Thymidylate synthase (TS) is a well-validated anticancer drug target in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells. However, whether capsaicin and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) induce synergistic cytotoxicity in NSCLC cells by regulating TS expression is unclear. This study investigated the cytotoxicity of capsaicin and 5-FU co-treatment on two hoursuman lung adenocarcinoma cell lines, H520 and H1703, and the underlying mechanisms. Capsaicin decreased TS expression in a p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) inactivation–dependent manner in H520 and H1703 cells. Enhancement of p38 MAPK activity by transfection with constitutive active mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase six vectors increased TS expression and cell survival. In addition, capsaicin and 5-FU co-treatment enhanced synergistic cytotoxicity and inhibited cell growth associated with TS downregulation and p38 MAPK inactivation in H520 and H1703 cells. Capsaicin and 5-FU co-treatment did not affect the cellular content of capsaicin. These results show that capsaicin may be combined with 5-FU to treat NSCLC.

Capsaicinoids and mineral composition of peppers produced under nutrient deficiencies

The aim of the present study was to verify the effect of the nutritional stress caused by macronutrient and boron deficiencies on the biosynthesis of capsaicinoids and the mineral nutrient contents of dry Capsicum annuum fruits. The experiments were carried out in a shade house at Campos dos Goytacazes/RJ, Brazil, in sand fertigated with a nutrient solution, in randomized blocks applying an 8x2 bifactorial scheme, with eight treatments [Complete treatment and applying the element omission technique for nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), sulfur (S) and boron (B)], and two fruit harvesting dates, with four replications. Pepper fruits produced under potassium deficiency displayed increased capsaicin contents, whereas sulfur deficiency decreased capsaicin contents. Capsaicin contents were different depending on the harvesting dates, ranging from 0.369 to 1.224 mg g−1.

Processing effect on the bioactive compounds content of Mexican jalapeño peppers for chipotle (Capsicum annum L.)

The objective of this work was to evaluate the antioxidant capacity and bioactive compounds content in two Jalapeño pepper varieties, both fresh and smoked-dehydrated (chipotle) and in commercial chipotle pepper sauces. The antioxidant capacity, capsaicin content, carotenoids and total phenols were evaluated. The smoked-dehydrated process had an effect on all the variables analysed (P?0.05). The chipotle pepper presented higher antioxidant activity (112.33 µmol ET/g) and content of bioactive compounds than fresh pepper and commercial sauces. In fresh pepper, the 100-Grande variety had higher antioxidant capacity (71.92 µmol ET/g) than Apache (48.31 µmol ET/g), while no effect on any of the analysed variables was reported in chipotle peppers. It is concluded that the smoked-dehydrated process of jalapeño pepper affects quality in a positive way, significantly increasing the nutritional and functional value derived from an increase in the bioactive compounds content and the antioxidant activity of chipotle peppers due to this process.

Assessment of genetic variability for biochemical traits in paprika (Capsicum annuum L.) genotypes

An experiment was conducted to estimate the genetic variability, heritability and genetic advance for seven qualitative characters viz., ascorbic acid, oleoresin content, capsaicin content, total extractable colour, red carotenoids, yellow carotenoids and total caroteniods. Significant differences were observed among the genotypes for all the traits. The phenotypic coefficient of variation was higher than genotypic coefficient of variation for all characters. High magnitude of PCV and GCV were observed for all the traits indicating the existence of wide range of genetic variability in the germplasm for these traits. High heritability coupled with high genetic advance as % of mean was observed for all the characters indicating the predominance of additive gene action making the selection more effective.

Genotype by environment interaction for quality traits in chilli pepper (Capsicum annuum L.)

There is a need for identifying the specific environments for the selection of adapted and stable genotypes for quality traits in chilli pepper. Among these quality traits, pungency and coloring matter are the most important ones, which need to be in stable amounts in final products. Hence, this multi-environmental evaluation of chilli pepper genotypes was done in three distinct environments, to identify the suitable environments for selection and also suitable genotypes for specific quality traits. The study includes 43 chilli genotypes tested for three distinct growing conditions for nine different quality traits at Punjab Agricultural University and data was analyzed using Eberhart & Russell?s model and GGE Biplot analysis. The environmental effect accounts for more than 35% variation for the capsaicin in oleoresin and dry matter content. While the traits namely capsaicin content in red powder (3%) and capsaicin in green chili (4.73%) were least influenced by the environment. The contribution of G?E interactions was ? 25% for all the studied traits except ascorbic acid. The genotype AC 101 was best for capsaicin content in green and red chilli powder across the environments. The data generated from this study help to identify the stable and superior genotypes for quality traits in early, main and late-season planting.

Determination of bioactive components in selected varieties of pepper (Capsicum L.)

ABSTRACT The objective of this paper was to examine the total polyphenols, vitamin C and capsaicin contents of pepper (varieties: Garam F1, Alma, Poseidon, Promontor, Slovakia, Claudius, Bhut Jolokia, Serrano, and Candlelight) and their correlation with the antioxidant activity by using the high performance liquid chromatography and Folin-Ciocalteu method. The limit of detection for capsaicin was 0.09 µg.g−1.Vitamin C and capsaicin ranged from 95.76 to 2,139 and from 44.40 to 2,224 μg.g−1 dry matter (DM), respectively. The determined total polyphenol content (TPC) ranged from 4,230 to 9,939 mg GAE.kg−1 DM and the values of antioxidant activity (AA) determined by using DPPH •, FRAP and ABTS • + methods were in range 19.48–91.81, 19.08–61.46 and 15.72–65.70 μmol TE.g−1 DM, respectively. Based on the statistical evaluation, there was a high correlation between vitamin C content and antioxidant activity of peppers. The obtained results suggest that due to the composition of bioactive compounds, especially antioxidants, the consumption of pepper fruits is an ideal choice for the prevention of the cell damage.

Genotoxicity Evaluation of Capsaicin-Containing (CP) Pharmacopuncture, in an In Vivo Micronucleus Test.

ObjectivesCapsaicin-containing (CP) pharmacopuncture was developed to treat neuropathic pain. This study was conducted to assess the toxicity of CP extract for pharmacopuncture, using a micronucleus test.MethodsFirst, a dose range finding study was conducted. Then an in vivo micronucleus test was performed to determine the induction of micronuclei in mouse bone marrow cells after intramuscular administration of CP twice with a 24-hour interval to 8-week-old ICR mice. A high dose of 0.2 mL/animal was selected, and this was sequentially diluted by applying a geometric ratio of 2 to produce two lower dose levels (0.1 and 0.05 mL/animal). In addition, negative and positive control groups were set up, and an HPLC analysis was conducted to confirm the capsaicin content of CP.ResultsThe incidence of micro-nucleated polychromatic erythrocytes in polychromatic erythrocytes in the CP-treated group was similar to that in the negative-control group, while that in the positive-control group was significantly greater. In addition, the ratio of polychromatic erythrocytes to total erythrocytes in the CP treatment group and the positive control group was not significantly different from the negative control group. In the HPLC analysis, capsaicin in the CP was identified through a comparison with the retention time of the capsaicin standard of 27 min.ConclusionCP did not show any indication of any potential to induce micronuclei formation in bone marrow cells of ICR mice under the conditions of this study. Further toxicity studies are necessary to ensure the safety of the use of CP in clinical practice.