Intestinal absorption is an important process which determines the bioavailability of the nutrients and physiologically active substances in food. Although the existence of various pathways for intestinal absorption has been already reported, the effect of food-derived substances on the intestinal absorption mechanism is poorly uderstood. A monolayer of human intestinal epithelial Caco-2 cells cultured on a semipermeable filter was used as a model of the intestinal epithelium in an attempt to detect those food substances which would affect the intestinal epithelial permeability. Among the various food samples investigated, an extract of sweet pepper (Capsicum annuum L.var. grossum) was found to contain certain substances which could modulate the paracellular permeability. The permeability for water-soluble substances of low molecular weight, including oligopeptides, was facilitated by treating the cell monolayer with this extract. Molecular and functional properties of the active substances in this extract were also investigated.
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