Capsaicinoids are amides, a type of secondary metabolites in hot peppers, responsible for their hot taste also known as pungency. They possess many pharmacological properties with great potential for pharmacy like analgesic, blood glucose level reduction, insulin level improvement, reduction of triglycerides and cholesterol levels, etc. For the needs of this study a reliable and easy applicable RP-HPLC method with UV detection for determination of capsaicinoids was developed. Two traditional and two newly selected Bulgarian hot pepper varieties were studied. The concentrations of capsaicin and dihydrocapsaicin in the pericarp and the seeds were determined respectively. According to the Scoville heat unit (SHU) equivalence of the pericarps, the varieties Dzhulyunska shipka 1021, Zlatna shipka and Kehlibar show moderate pungency and present a potential value for the pharmaceutical and food industries. The current study contributes to the scientific database with regard to the pungency of Capsicum annuum L. varieties.
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