New antiinflammatory sucrose esters in the natural sticky coating of tomatillo (Physalis philadelphica), an important culinary fruit

• Five new sucrose esters were isolated from the natural sticky coating on tomatillo fruit.
• Sucrose esters are primary ingredient in the sticky material on tomatillo.
• Sucrose esters showed antiinflammatory activity similar to aspirin and ibuprofen.
• These sucrose esters shall be considered as functional food ingredients.

Tomatillo is a popular culinary fruit. The sticky material on its surface, consumed as part of the fruit, has never been investigated. Chemical characterization of sticky material on tomatillo fruits yielded five new sucrose esters, as confirmed by spectroscopic methods. The solvent extract of the sticky material from the whole fresh fruit and pure isolates showed antiinflammatory activity as confirmed by in vitro cyclooxygenase enzymes inhibitory assays. Five sucrose esters isolated at 100 μg/mL (153.8, 138.8, 136.2, 141.6 and 138.8 μM, respectively) inhibited cyclooxygenase-1 and -2 enzymes by 50%. The cyclooxygenase enzyme inhibitory activity of extract and isolates at 100 μg/mL was similar to non-steroidal antiinflammatory drugs aspirin, ibuprofen and naproxen, used as positive controls in the assay at 108, 12 and 15 μg/mL (600, 60 and 60 μM), respectively.