Abstract

The ripe and dried fruits of organic pepper Capsicum chinense Jacq., obtained during planting, cultivation and harvesting, were subjected to solid-liquid extraction using a Soxhlet apparatus with hexane to remove non-polar compounds, and then with ethanol to remove the target compounds. The ethanolic extracts were characterized by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) determining the composition of capsaicin (74.1%), dyhidrocapsaicin (8.9%), docosenamide (11.7%), ethyl linoleate (3.2%) and ethyl palmitate (2.1%). Three different bio-screenings: (1) the Trolox® equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC); (2) the inhibition of the enzyme acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and; (3) the embryo toxicity and the induction of phenotypic changes in the Zebrafish model were used. It was found that the ethanol extracts possess antioxidant activity (TAA 1800 ± 91 mmol Trolox®/kg extract) and AChE inhibition (IC₅₀ 18.8 ± 0.5 µg/ml), as well as a moderate toxicity in zebrafish embryos (LC₅₀ 39.7 ± 2.1 µg/ml), and good dual activity that make them extremely important not only for nutrition, but also as pharmacological substrates.

Key words: Capsicum chinense, capsaicinoid, acetylcholinesterase inhibitor, Trolox® equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC), zebrafish, developmental toxicity.