Cuoteaoicb: Sources, Medicinal Properties aJld Their Application in Food and Nutraceutical Industry

Abstract

Carotcaoids ate biosynthesi:zcd by t.cten&, alp:. funp, and planb, but 001 by lll!imals, wtieh mmt obtain them frotn lbeit food. These compounds are dmdcd iDrD two major clasecs bNod on 1beir stNcturaJ elements; carotenes, constitlltl:d by carbon -1 bydrop le.i. p-c:arotc:IJC, c:t<A.rotme md !)'COpCDC). md umbopbyill, coasti1Dled by cadlo!1. hydropi. md lldditiooally oxyp Cc.a. lutein, ll~ ~·ntbi0 utaxMJ!lrio IDd fUcoxmtbin). CmoccDom have iood dfca on humm bealtb. such as pro-vitamin A. amioxidant, 11111icancer, antiobcsrty d£ect sod lllab>lic effect oo bone compoocau. Currmtly, caroicooidt m"C used ~ as feed lldditivca, lllima1 feed Sl.lpplcmezits, mmmil food colonmcs, llUlr'lcl1t suppicmcDt aad, more rccmtty, as n~ for cosmc:cic and pbsnnacaiti~ purposes. These compounds = be produced commaciaily by cllemicll ~ fcmectadoo or iJollll!On from the small nmnber of abwmot nallnl SOW"CCS. Fwthermore. coam:ictcial production of carocmoids &om ~ ~ mainly with ~ mauufacture by dlcnuQI syntbcsis. Howcw:r. most of tbe c:ccnmacially used carotenoids (e.g. p... c:motmc, astutmdtia and camaxanliri.n) IR produco! by chrmical synthesis. Mltrinc carote:olrids ere c:oosidcnbly new. Our micllSive researdl on fucoxand!.in, a type of aovel ca.rotcooid, is cliscusscd in this paper