Food Colour & Quality Lab., Facultad de Farmacia, Universidad de Sevilla, Sevilla, Spain.
Methods Enzymol. 2022;670:369-398. doi: 10.1016/bs.mie.2021.11.011. Epub 2021 Dec 9.
Carotenoids are versatile isoprenoids of great importance in food science and nutrition. These compounds are natural colorants and key to combat vitamin A deficiency, a major global nutritional problem. In addition, carotenoids have health-promoting biological actions that can contribute to reduce the risk of serious diseases, including cancer, cardiovascular disease, skin, bone and eye conditions and metabolic disorders. Beneficial roles of carotenoids in cognition and fetal development are also attracting increased attention. The presence of double bonds cause carotenoids to be prone to geometrical isomerization. The distinction among geometrical isomers of carotenoids is important as there can be important differences in terms of bioavailability, stability during processing or even biological actions. This chapter summarizes strategies to separate and tentatively identify geometrical isomers of major dietary carotenoids (neoxanthin, violaxanthin, lutein, zeaxanthin, β-cryptoxanthin, α-carotene, β-carotene, lycopene, phytoene and phytofluene).
类胡萝卜素是多功能的异戊二烯类化合物，在食品科学和营养中具有重要意义。这些化合物是天然的着色剂，是防治维生素 A 缺乏症（一种全球性重大营养问题）的关键。此外，类胡萝卜素具有促进健康的生物作用，可以帮助降低罹患严重疾病的风险，包括癌症、心血管疾病、皮肤、骨骼和眼部疾病以及代谢紊乱。类胡萝卜素在认知和胎儿发育方面的有益作用也越来越受到关注。由于存在双键，类胡萝卜素容易发生几何异构化。区分类胡萝卜素的几何异构体非常重要，因为它们在生物利用度、加工过程中的稳定性甚至生物作用方面可能存在重要差异。本章总结了分离和初步鉴定主要膳食类胡萝卜素（新黄质、玉米黄质、叶黄素、玉米黄素、β-隐黄质、α-胡萝卜素、β-胡萝卜素、番茄红素、phytoene 和 phytofluene）的几何异构体的策略。
