Gerster H
Vitamin Research Department, F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd, Basel, Switzerland.
J Am Coll Nutr. 1997 Apr;16(2):109-26. doi: 10.1080/07315724.1997.10718661.
Lycopene is one of the major carotenoids in Western diets and is found almost exclusively in tomatoes and tomato products. It accounts for about 50% of carotenoids in human serum. Among the common dietary carotenoids lycopene has the highest singlet oxygen quenching capacity in vitro. Other outstanding features are its high concentration in testes, adrenal gland and prostate. In contrast to other carotenoids its serum values are not regularly reduced by smoking or alcohol consumption but by increasing age. Remarkable inverse relationships between lycopene intake or serum values and risk have been observed in particular for cancers of the prostate, pancreas and to a certain extent of the stomach. In some of the studies lycopene was the only carotenoid associated with risk reduction. Its role in cancer risk reduction still needs to be clarified. Patients with HIV infection, inflammatory diseases and hyperlipidemia with and without lipid lowering treatment may have depleted lycopene serum concentrations. Before embarking on large-scale human trials the distribution of lycopene and its biological functions need to be further evaluated.
番茄红素是西方饮食中主要的类胡萝卜素之一，几乎仅存在于番茄及番茄制品中。它约占人体血清中类胡萝卜素的50%。在常见的膳食类胡萝卜素中，番茄红素在体外具有最高的单线态氧淬灭能力。其他显著特点是其在睾丸、肾上腺和前列腺中的浓度较高。与其他类胡萝卜素不同，其血清值不会因吸烟或饮酒而规律性降低，而是会随着年龄增长而降低。尤其在前列腺癌、胰腺癌以及在一定程度上的胃癌方面，已观察到番茄红素摄入量或血清值与患病风险之间存在显著的负相关关系。在一些研究中，番茄红素是唯一与风险降低相关的类胡萝卜素。其在降低癌症风险中的作用仍有待阐明。感染HIV的患者、患有炎症性疾病以及患有高脂血症（无论是否接受降脂治疗）的患者，其血清番茄红素浓度可能会降低。在开展大规模人体试验之前，需要进一步评估番茄红素的分布及其生物学功能。
