Capsicum chinense cell cultures: A biotechnological platform for the sustainable production of bioactive metabolites for the cosmetics market

Capsicum species produce a broad range of bioactive metabolites with properties relevant to the cosmetics industry. However, the direct sourcing from Capsicum plants is hindered by the low and variable yields, which depend on genotype and environmental conditions, and by the pungent components of chili plants that act as irritants. We therefore set out to derive callus and cell suspension cultures from the non-pungent variety C. chinense cv. Trinidad Pimento as a sustainable and consistent source. Cultures were grown at the 2-L scale in darkness (D) or with a photoperiodic light source (P) and we prepared hydroethanolic and ethyl acetate extracts for the analysis of metabolic profiles and activities. Comprehensive untargeted metabolomic analysis revealed different clusters of metabolites under D and P conditions, although phenolamides and fatty acids were the most abundant compounds in both cases. Targeted analysis indicated the presence of capsiate, dihydrocapsiate and nordihydrocapsiate as key bioactive products in the hydroethanolic extracts and 18 different carotenoids in the ethyl acetate extracts. Bioactivity assays applied to the hydroethanolic extracts indicated significant antioxidant activity and the ability to inhibit the growth of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus. The extracts were neither cytotoxic nor phototoxic toward BALB/c 3T3 and HaCaT cell lines at concentrations low enough to exert antimicrobial effects. Our work shows that C. chinense cv. Trinidad Pimento cell cultures can produce specific metabolites in response to different cultivation conditions, which will allow their exploitation as a sustainable source of safe and efficacious ingredients for the cosmetics industry. • Comprehensive metabolite profiling was conducted on Capsicum sp. cell cultures. • Multiple compound classes, including phenolamides with cosmetic potential, were identified. • Hydroethanolic extracts exclusively inhibited S. aureus MRSA growth. • Capsicum sp. cell cultures show promise as biofactories for cosmetic active ingredient production. • Our results provide a foundation for up-scaling Capsicum sp. cell cultures.