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. 2016 Jul:129:16-24.
doi: 10.1016/j.ecoenv.2016.03.004. Epub 2016 Mar 10.

Chronic ozone exposure alters the secondary metabolite profile, antioxidant potential, anti-inflammatory property, and quality of red pepper fruit from Capsicum baccatum

Rafael Calixto Bortolin  1 , Fernanda Freitas Caregnato  2 , Armando Molina Divan Junior  3 , Alfeu Zanotto-Filho  2 , Karla Suzana Moresco  2 , Alessandro de Oliveira Rios  4 , Aguisson de Oliveira Salvi  5 , Caroline Flach Ortmann  5 , Pâmela de Carvalho  5 , Flávio Henrique Reginatto  5 , Daniel Pens Gelain  2 , José Cláudio Fonseca Moreira  2
Affiliations

Chronic ozone exposure alters the secondary metabolite profile, antioxidant potential, anti-inflammatory property, and quality of red pepper fruit from Capsicum baccatum

Rafael Calixto Bortolin et al. Ecotoxicol Environ Saf. 2016 Jul.

Abstract

Tropospheric ozone (O3) background concentrations have increased since pre-industrial times, reaching phytotoxic concentrations in many regions globally. However, the effect of high O3 concentrations on quality of fruit and vegetables remains unknown. Here, we evaluated whether O3 pollution alters the quality of Capsicum baccatum peppers by changing the secondary compound profiles and biological activity of the fruit. C. baccatum pepper plants were exposed to ozone for 62 days in an open-top chamber at a mean O3 concentration of 171.6µg/m(3). Capsaicin levels decreased by 50% in the pericarp, but remained unchanged in the seeds. In contrast, the total carotenoid content increased by 52.8% in the pericarp. The content of total phenolic compounds increased by 17% in the pericarp. The total antioxidant potential decreased by 87% in seeds of O3-treated plants. The seeds contributed more than the pericarp to the total radical-trapping antioxidant potential and total antioxidant reactivity. O3 treatment impaired the ferric-reducing antioxidant power of the seeds and reduced NO(•)-scavenging activity in the pericarp. However, O3 treatment increased ferrous ion-chelating activity and hydroxyl radical-scavenging activity in the pericarp. Our results confirm that O3 alters the secondary metabolite profile of C. baccatum pepper fruits and, consequently, their biological activity profile.

Keywords: Antioxidant potential; Bioactive compounds; Capsicum baccatum; Fruit quality; Ozone; Pepper.

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