Características Morfológicas y de Concentración de Capsaicina en Cinco Especies Nativas del Género Capsicum Cultivadas en Ecuador

The genetic resources of the genus Capsicum (chili peppers), family: (Solanaceae), are important as a natural source of Capsaicin. Reports on this characteristic in native chili peppers from Ecuador are scarce. In the present study, morphological variables of plants, fruits and seeds of five species of this genus were analyzed: C. baccatum, C. chinense, C. pubescens, C. annuum and C. frutescens, from the provinces of Loja, Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas, Esmeraldas, Los Ríos and Morona Santiago. Capsaicin present in the oleoresin of the fruits of these species was also identified and quantified. The identification of Capsaicin was carried out by Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC) comparing the oleoresins with the standard Capsaicin USP (98.9 %), obtaining an Rf of 0.184; Capsaicin showed a slight fluorescence at a wavelength of 254 nm. Quantification of the metabolite was performed by High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). Capsicum chinense presented the highest yield with an average of 11340 mg/kg; it was concluded that this species has a high potential for the extraction of Capsaicin, which can be used commercially in the pharmacological and/or food industry.