Capsaicin inhibits migration and invasion via inhibiting epithelial-mesenchymal transition in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma by up-regulation of claudin-3 expression

Neural mechanisms of priming effects of spicy food pictures induced analgesia

In this study, the effects of the priming of spicy food pictures on pain perception were evaluated in female participants using standardized methods of pain. Results from behavior tests revealed that the priming of spicy food pictures significantly reduced pain perception, particularly at high-pain intensities. Electrophysiological analysis showed that the analgesic effects of spicy food pictures were linked to decreased pain-related event-related potentials, such as N2 and P2 amplitudes, and suppressed θ-oscillations in the sensorimotor cortex. Both N2 amplitudes and θ-oscillations activities were found to be correlated with participants' pain perception. These results suggest that spicy-arousal stimuli may act as an "antagonist" to the increase in N2 amplitudes and θ-oscillations power induced by pain and influence the neuronal networks involved in integrating spontaneous nociceptive resources, which supports the dissociation theory of pain sensation and affection. These findings highlight the potential use of spicy-arousal stimuli as an analgesic and emphasize the importance of considering both the intensity of the stimuli and the individual's emotional state in the assessment and treatment of pain.

Capsaicin: A Two-Decade Systematic Review of Global Research Output and Recent Advances Against Human Cancer

Capsaicin (8-methyl-N-vanillyl-6-nonenamide) is one of the most important natural products in the genus Capsicum. Due to its numerous biological effects, there has been extensive and increasing research interest in capsaicin, resulting in increased scientific publications in recent years. Therefore, an in-depth bibliometric analysis of published literature on capsaicin from 2001 to 2021 was performed to assess the global research status, thematic and emerging areas, and potential insights into future research. Furthermore, recent research advances of capsaicin and its combination therapy on human cancer as well as their potential mechanisms of action were described. In the last two decades, research outputs on capsaicin have increased by an estimated 18% per year and were dominated by research articles at 93% of the 3753 assessed literature. In addition, anti-cancer/pharmacokinetics, cytotoxicity, in vivo neurological and pain research studies were the keyword clusters generated and designated as thematic domains for capsaicin research. It was evident that the United States, China, and Japan accounted for about 42% of 3753 publications that met the inclusion criteria. Also, visibly dominant collaboration nodes and networks with most of the other identified countries were established. Assessment of the eligible literature revealed that the potential of capsaicin for mitigating cancer mainly entailed its chemo-preventive effects, which were often linked to its ability to exert multi-biological effects such as anti-mutagenic, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. However, clinical studies were limited, which may be related to some of the inherent challenges associated with capsaicin in the limited clinical trials. This review presents a novel approach to visualizing information about capsaicin research and a comprehensive perspective on the therapeutic significance and applications of capsaicin in the treatment of human cancer.