Due to their similarity with capsaicin, these molecules can be grouped in a family called capsaicinoids. Plants from Capsicum genus produce many capsaicin-related compounds. The main solvents used to extract and maintain capsaicin properties are nonpolar solvents such as ether, benzene, dimethyl sulfoxide and acetone, but ethanol can also be used as a solvent due to its mixed properties.ДЎ.2. Capsaicin presents a nonpolar phenolic structure and thus cannot be solubilized in water. Currently, the structure and properties of capsaicin are well defined ( Figure 1). Capsaicin was first purified in 1876 but its structure started to be described only in 1919. These properties caught the attention of researchers long ago and still do nowadays, boosting our knowledge about capsaicin. Дespite the unpleasant sensation that occurs when large quantities of chili peppers are consumed, capsaicin promotes pain relief when used in the right dosage and frequency. Capsaicin also protects plants from parasites such as insects and mold, and humans have been using this property to treat infectious diseases and to preserve food. Importantly, pepper seeds resist to birdsВґ digestive tract, making them the perfect consumers. Birds, on the other hand, cannot feel this unpleasant taste of peppers. The aversion to eating large amounts of capsaicin keeps rodents and other mammals away and this represents an important mechanism to increase the chances of germination since mammals can grind and digest the seeds making them unable to germinate. Its concentration is higher in the area surrounding the seeds (placental tissue) and this localization is related directly to the role of capsaicin in protecting seed germination. In fact, capsaicin is not equally distributed in all parts of pepper fruit. The production of capsaicin among plants from the Capsicum genus was well conserved, likely due to its roles in seed germination and protection from parasites. The effects of capsaicin go well beyond the taste and its role in plantsвЂ™ health help us to understand how its use can improve human health. Capsaicin is an intriguing molecule since the consumption of chili peppers evokes opposing sensations (pleasant and unpleasant) depending on the individual experience and chili pepper consumption habits. The quantities of capsaicin can represent up to 1% of the mass of the chili peppers and, together with salt, represent the most consumed condiment by humans.

All plants from Capsicum genus produce varied amounts of capsaicin, except Capsicum annum, and all of them have been used as a spice ingredient and consumed by humans for over 6000 years. Discovery, Natural Sources, Role in Plants, Isolation, and Structure of CapsaicinД¬hili peppers contain capsaicin (8-methyl- N-vanillyl-6-nonenamide), a phenolic compound responsible for their characteristic taste and pungency. Furthermore, we will draw attention to the rationale for other clinical therapeutic uses and implications of capsaicin in diseases such as obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular conditions, cancer, airway diseases, itch, gastric, and urological disorders.ДЎ.1. We will focus on the analgesic effects of capsaicin and its clinical applicability in treating pain. In this review, we will highlight the importance of capsaicin to the current understanding of neuronal modulation of pain and explore some mechanisms of capsaicin-induced pain.

Therefore, the complexities of capsaicin-triggered responses as well as its therapeutic usefulness highlight the importance of understanding its mechanisms of action not only in pain modulation, but also in other pathological conditions. This paradox can also be seen with opioids, which have an established clinical use as analgesics, but also induce hyperalgesia. Curiously, many recent studies have confirmed scientifically what was already known by some cultures: capsaicin can also be used to relieve pain. Among these basic experimental tools for the study of pain mechanisms and development of novel analgesics, we can fairly consider capsaicin as one of the most important sources of knowledge in the pain field. Although our understanding of pain mechanisms has evolved greatly through the development of new techniques, experimental tools are still extremely necessary and widely used. In addition to the sensation of heat, capsaicin produces pain and, for this reason, is an important tool in the study of pain. Capsaicin is a compound found in chili peppers and responsible for their burning and irritant effect.

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