The correlation between the antioxidation and the antimutagenicity of carotenoids from chili against food mutagen IQ

The effect of chili oleoresins extracted with eight solvents (water, methanol, ethanol, propanol, acetone, dichloromethane, diethyl ether, or n- hexane) on antioxidation and antimutagenicity were examined by linoleic acid oxidation system and Ames test. All oleoresins showed various degrees of antioxidation and antimutagenicity toward linoleic acid and IQ (2-amino-3- methylimidazo[4,5-flquinoline), separately. Among them, n-hexane oleoresin showed the strongest activity. The antioxidative and antimutagenic compounds were isolated and characterized from n-hexane oleoresin by TLC and HPLC-MS. The two major group of compounds, carotenoids and capsaicinoids, were found in n-hexane oleoresin, but only cartenoids showed significant antioxidation and antimutagenicity. Ten carotenoids were tentatively identified as β- carotene, β-cryptoxanthin, cryptocapsin, zeaxanthin, capsolutin, cis- capsanthin, altherxanthin, capsanthin, violaxanthin, and capsorubin from the isolated fourteen carotenoids. All carotenoids showed antioxidation as well as antimutagenicity (r=0.89, P < 0.05). In order to study the effective role of antioxidant on the antimutagenicity against IQ, the scavenged hydroxyl radical activity was examined. The scavenged hydroxyl radical effect of fourteen carotenoids was correlated with their antimutagenicity (r=0.78, P<0.05); cryptocapsin showed the strongest activity among them. In addition, cryptocapsin showed reduced oxidative potential toward N-hydroxyl-IQ(N-OH- IQ) from +44 mV to -30 mV, which decreased its electriphile of N-OH-IQ. Moreover, that the modifying effects of carotenoids on the mutagenicity of IQ is possible mediated through direct interaction with its active metabolite (N-OH-IQ) was demonstrated by scavenged free radicals and reduced electrophiles.