One-procedure synthesis of capsiate from capsaicin by lipase-catalyzed dynamic transacylation.

Capsiate has a structure similar to capsaicin but no oral pungency. Furthermore, capsiate displayed antioxidant activity and inhibited angiogenesis and vascular permeability, and therefore, showed potential as a medicine and food supplement. Capsaicin is now commercially available, however capsiate is scarcely present in natural foods. We investigated the direct enzymatic conversion of a capsaicinoid to a capsinoid. It was observed that the rate of lipase-catalyzed acylation of vanillyl alcohol with nonanoic acid was faster than that of hydrolysis of N-vanillylnonanamide to vanillyl amide and nonanoic acid in n-hexane at 70°C. As a result, we performed a one-procedure synthesis of capsiate from capsaicin via lipase-catalyzed transacylation.