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Current views on carotenoids: biology, epidemiology and trials

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Vitamin A and Retinoids: An Update of Biological Aspects and Clinical Applications

Part of the book series: MCBU Molecular and Cell Biology Updates ((MCBU))

Abstract

There have been well over 600 carotenoids described in nature with the vast majority having colors ranging from pale yellow to deep red [1]. We find them not only in our fruits and vegetables, but in the flowers and foliage decorating our environment. In addition, many animal species contain visible coloration due to the ingestion of carotenoid-containing plant material. The pinkish tone of many fish species, some of the color in the skin and plumage of birds, and even the yellow color in the fat associated with meat products represents the transfer of carotenoids from plants to animals. The human is not exempt from this process, for we absorb numerous carotenoids from our diet, and then deposit them in our tissues [2]. Figure 1 represents the structures of the most common carotenoids found in humans, with relative levels depending on regional differences in diet. It should be noted that some of the naturally occurring carotenoids are found in the cis-configuration, which can significantly alter their physical properties and may impact on their biological properties. An example of this phenomenon relates to β-carotene. In our usual plant sources of β-carotene, the predominant isomeric form is the all-trans-β-carotene. In some algal sources, such as Dunaliella, there is a 50:50 mixture of the all-trans-β-carotene and 9-cis-β-carotene [3]. The latter isomer is much more soluble, presumably due to an inability to form tightly structured crystals. This change in solubility has been suggested as one reason for differences in the biological properties of these two isomers [4].

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biochemistry, School of Medicine and USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging, Tufts University, Boston, MA, 02111, USA

    N. I. Krinsky

  2. Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, Yale University School of Medicine and Yale Cancer Center, New Haven, CT, 06520, USA

    S. T. Mayne

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  1. Cattedra di Chimica Biologica, Istituto di Farmacologia e Farmacognosia, Università di Palermo, Via Forlanini 1, Palermo, I-90134, Italy

    Maria A. Livrea

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Krinsky, N.I., Mayne, S.T. (2000). Current views on carotenoids: biology, epidemiology and trials. In: Livrea, M.A. (eds) Vitamin A and Retinoids: An Update of Biological Aspects and Clinical Applications. MCBU Molecular and Cell Biology Updates. Birkhäuser, Basel. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-0348-8454-9_4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-0348-8454-9_4

  • Publisher Name: Birkhäuser, Basel

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-0348-9574-3

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