Comparative Study on the Chemical Composition, Antioxidant Properties and Hypoglycaemic Activities of Two Capsicum annuum L. cultivars (acuminatum small and cerasiferum)

The present study aimed to evaluate for the first time the phenols, flavonoids, carotenoids,capsaicin and dihydrocapsaicin content and the antioxidant and hypoglycemic properties ofCapsicum annuum var. acuminatum small and C. annuum var. cerasiferum air-dried fruits. Theethanol extract of C. annuum var. acuminatum small, characterized by the major content of totalpoliphenols, flavonoids, carotenoids and capsaicinoids, showed the highest radical scavengingactivity (IC50 of 152.9 microg/ml). On the contrary, C. annuum var. cerasiferum showed a significantantioxidant activity evaluated by the beta-carotene bleaching test (IC50 of 3.1 microg/ml). The lipophilicfraction of both C. annuum var. acuminatum and C. annuum var. cerasiferum exhibited aninteresting and selective inhibitory activity against alpha-amylase (IC50 of 6.9 and 20.1 microg/ml,respectively).