Chapter 18
Nutraceutical and Pharmaceutical
Applications of Carotenoids
Masaki Honda
Abstract Carotenoids, the most common fat-soluble plant pigments in nature, play
important roles in scavenging peroxyl radicals and singlet oxygen in human. Dietary
carotenoids are considered to be beneficial for the prevention of various diseases,
including certain cancers, cardiovascular disease, and eye disease. Due to such
bioactivities of carotenoids, they are often used in nutritional supplements, skin
care cosmetics, and pharmaceutical products as well as in a natural color for foods and
feeds. In particular, the demands of β-carotene, lycopene, astaxanthin, lutein, zeaxanthin, β-cryptoxanthin, and fucoxanthin are increasing for nutraceutical and pharmaceutical applications in recent years. Although carotenoids exhibit high antioxidant activity in common, the bioactivity varies depending on the structure, e.g.,
lutein and zeaxanthin are effective for the prevention of eye disease, and fucoxanthin
exhibits a strong anti-obesity activity. The objective of this contribution is to review
the bioactivities and applications of commercially important carotenoids. Furthermore, the aspects of the recent progress in processing technology of carotenoids for
nutraceutical and pharmaceutical applications are also included in this review.
Keywords Carotenoid · Bioactivity · Application · Market size · E/Z-isomer
18.1 Bioactivity of Carotenoids
Most carotenoids have a 40-carbon basal structure including a system of conjugated
double bonds. Carotenoids can be roughly classified into the following two groups:
(1) carotenes, which are nonoxygenated molecules such as lycopene, α-carotene, and
β-carotene; (2) xanthophylls, which are oxygen-containing molecules such as lutein,
astaxanthin, and fucoxanthin (Fig. 18.1), and more than 750 naturally occurring
carotenoids have been identified until now (Maoka 2009).
M. Honda (B)
Faculty of Science & Technology, Meijo University, Shiogamaguchi, Tempaku-Ku, Nagoya
468-8502, Japan
e-mail: honda@meijo-u.ac.jp
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
E. Jacob-Lopes et al. (eds.), Pigments from Microalgae Handbook,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-50971-2_18
449
Nutraceutical and Pharmaceutical
Applications of Carotenoids
Masaki Honda
Abstract Carotenoids, the most common fat-soluble plant pigments in nature, play
important roles in scavenging peroxyl radicals and singlet oxygen in human. Dietary
carotenoids are considered to be beneficial for the prevention of various diseases,
including certain cancers, cardiovascular disease, and eye disease. Due to such
bioactivities of carotenoids, they are often used in nutritional supplements, skin
care cosmetics, and pharmaceutical products as well as in a natural color for foods and
feeds. In particular, the demands of β-carotene, lycopene, astaxanthin, lutein, zeaxanthin, β-cryptoxanthin, and fucoxanthin are increasing for nutraceutical and pharmaceutical applications in recent years. Although carotenoids exhibit high antioxidant activity in common, the bioactivity varies depending on the structure, e.g.,
lutein and zeaxanthin are effective for the prevention of eye disease, and fucoxanthin
exhibits a strong anti-obesity activity. The objective of this contribution is to review
the bioactivities and applications of commercially important carotenoids. Furthermore, the aspects of the recent progress in processing technology of carotenoids for
nutraceutical and pharmaceutical applications are also included in this review.
Keywords Carotenoid · Bioactivity · Application · Market size · E/Z-isomer
18.1 Bioactivity of Carotenoids
Most carotenoids have a 40-carbon basal structure including a system of conjugated
double bonds. Carotenoids can be roughly classified into the following two groups:
(1) carotenes, which are nonoxygenated molecules such as lycopene, α-carotene, and
β-carotene; (2) xanthophylls, which are oxygen-containing molecules such as lutein,
astaxanthin, and fucoxanthin (Fig. 18.1), and more than 750 naturally occurring
carotenoids have been identified until now (Maoka 2009).
M. Honda (B)
Faculty of Science & Technology, Meijo University, Shiogamaguchi, Tempaku-Ku, Nagoya
468-8502, Japan
e-mail: honda@meijo-u.ac.jp
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
E. Jacob-Lopes et al. (eds.), Pigments from Microalgae Handbook,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-50971-2_18
449