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1.
Fruit ripening: dynamics and integrated analysis of carotenoids and anthocyanins.
Kapoor, L, Simkin, AJ, George Priya Doss, C, Siva, R
BMC plant biology. 2022;(1):27
Abstract
BACKGROUND Fruits are vital food resources as they are loaded with bioactive compounds varying with different stages of ripening. As the fruit ripens, a dynamic color change is observed from green to yellow to red due to the biosynthesis of pigments like chlorophyll, carotenoids, and anthocyanins. Apart from making the fruit attractive and being a visual indicator of the ripening status, pigments add value to a ripened fruit by making them a source of nutraceuticals and industrial products. As the fruit matures, it undergoes biochemical changes which alter the pigment composition of fruits. RESULTS The synthesis, degradation and retention pathways of fruit pigments are mediated by hormonal, genetic, and environmental factors. Manipulation of the underlying regulatory mechanisms during fruit ripening suggests ways to enhance the desired pigments in fruits by biotechnological interventions. Here we report, in-depth insight into the dynamics of a pigment change in ripening and the regulatory mechanisms in action. CONCLUSIONS This review emphasizes the role of pigments as an asset to a ripened fruit as they augment the nutritive value, antioxidant levels and the net carbon gain of fruits; pigments are a source for fruit biofortification have tremendous industrial value along with being a tool to predict the harvest. This report will be of great utility to the harvesters, traders, consumers, and natural product divisions to extract the leading nutraceutical and industrial potential of preferred pigments biosynthesized at different fruit ripening stages.
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2.
Plant apocarotenoids: from retrograde signaling to interspecific communication.
Moreno, JC, Mi, J, Alagoz, Y, Al-Babili, S
The Plant journal : for cell and molecular biology. 2021;(2):351-375
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Abstract
Carotenoids are isoprenoid compounds synthesized by all photosynthetic and some non-photosynthetic organisms. They are essential for photosynthesis and contribute to many other aspects of a plant's life. The oxidative breakdown of carotenoids gives rise to the formation of a diverse family of essential metabolites called apocarotenoids. This metabolic process either takes place spontaneously through reactive oxygen species or is catalyzed by enzymes generally belonging to the CAROTENOID CLEAVAGE DIOXYGENASE family. Apocarotenoids include the phytohormones abscisic acid and strigolactones (SLs), signaling molecules and growth regulators. Abscisic acid and SLs are vital in regulating plant growth, development and stress response. SLs are also an essential component in plants' rhizospheric communication with symbionts and parasites. Other apocarotenoid small molecules, such as blumenols, mycorradicins, zaxinone, anchorene, β-cyclocitral, β-cyclogeranic acid, β-ionone and loliolide, are involved in plant growth and development, and/or contribute to different processes, including arbuscular mycorrhiza symbiosis, abiotic stress response, plant-plant and plant-herbivore interactions and plastid retrograde signaling. There are also indications for the presence of structurally unidentified linear cis-carotene-derived apocarotenoids, which are presumed to modulate plastid biogenesis and leaf morphology, among other developmental processes. Here, we provide an overview on the biology of old, recently discovered and supposed plant apocarotenoid signaling molecules, describing their biosynthesis, developmental and physiological functions, and role as a messenger in plant communication.
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Carotenoid Biosynthesis and Plastid Development in Plants: The Role of Light.
Quian-Ulloa, R, Stange, C
International journal of molecular sciences. 2021;(3)
Abstract
Light is an important cue that stimulates both plastid development and biosynthesis of carotenoids in plants. During photomorphogenesis or de-etiolation, photoreceptors are activated and molecular factors for carotenoid and chlorophyll biosynthesis are induced thereof. In fruits, light is absorbed by chloroplasts in the early stages of ripening, which allows a gradual synthesis of carotenoids in the peel and pulp with the onset of chromoplasts' development. In roots, only a fraction of light reaches this tissue, which is not required for carotenoid synthesis, but it is essential for root development. When exposed to light, roots start greening due to chloroplast development. However, the colored taproot of carrot grown underground presents a high carotenoid accumulation together with chromoplast development, similar to citrus fruits during ripening. Interestingly, total carotenoid levels decrease in carrots roots when illuminated and develop chloroplasts, similar to normal roots exposed to light. The recent findings of the effect of light quality upon the induction of molecular factors involved in carotenoid synthesis in leaves, fruit, and roots are discussed, aiming to propose consensus mechanisms in order to contribute to the understanding of carotenoid synthesis regulation by light in plants.
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Bioactive Compounds for Skin Health: A Review.
Michalak, M, Pierzak, M, Kręcisz, B, Suliga, E
Nutrients. 2021;(1)
Abstract
Human skin is continually changing. The condition of the skin largely depends on the individual's overall state of health. A balanced diet plays an important role in the proper functioning of the human body, including the skin. The present study draws attention to bioactive substances, i.e., vitamins, minerals, fatty acids, polyphenols, and carotenoids, with a particular focus on their effects on the condition of the skin. The aim of the study was to review the literature on the effects of bioactive substances on skin parameters such as elasticity, firmness, wrinkles, senile dryness, hydration and color, and to define their role in the process of skin ageing.
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Carotenoids from Cyanobacteria: Biotechnological Potential and Optimization Strategies.
Pagels, F, Vasconcelos, V, Guedes, AC
Biomolecules. 2021;(5)
Abstract
Carotenoids are tetraterpenoids molecules present in all photosynthetic organisms, responsible for better light-harvesting and energy dissipation in photosynthesis. In cyanobacteria, the biosynthetic pathway of carotenoids is well described, and apart from the more common compounds (e.g., β-carotene, zeaxanthin, and echinenone), specific carotenoids can also be found, such as myxoxanthophyll. Moreover, cyanobacteria have a protein complex called orange carotenoid protein (OCP) as a mechanism of photoprotection. Although cyanobacteria are not the organism of choice for the industrial production of carotenoids, the optimisation of their production and the evaluation of their bioactive capacity demonstrate that these organisms may indeed be a potential candidate for future pigment production in a more environmentally friendly and sustainable approach of biorefinery. Carotenoids-rich extracts are described as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-tumoral agents and are proposed for feed and cosmetical industries. Thus, several strategies for the optimisation of a cyanobacteria-based bioprocess for the obtention of pigments were described. This review aims to give an overview of carotenoids from cyanobacteria not only in terms of their chemistry but also in terms of their biotechnological applicability and the advances and the challenges in the production of such compounds.
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Role of carotenoids and retinoids during heart development.
Sirbu, IO, Chiş, AR, Moise, AR
Biochimica et biophysica acta. Molecular and cell biology of lipids. 2020;(11):158636
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The nutritional requirements of the developing embryo are complex. In the case of dietary vitamin A (retinol, retinyl esters and provitamin A carotenoids), maternal derived nutrients serve as precursors to signaling molecules such as retinoic acid, which is required for embryonic patterning and organogenesis. Despite variations in the composition and levels of maternal vitamin A, embryonic tissues need to generate a precise amount of retinoic acid to avoid congenital malformations. Here, we summarize recent findings regarding the role and metabolism of vitamin A during heart development and we survey the association of genes known to affect retinoid metabolism or signaling with various inherited disorders. A better understanding of the roles of vitamin A in the heart and of the factors that affect retinoid metabolism and signaling can help design strategies to meet nutritional needs and to prevent birth defects and disorders associated with altered retinoid metabolism. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled Carotenoids recent advances in cell and molecular biology edited by Johannes von Lintig and Loredana Quadro.
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Silver Island Film for Enhancing Light Harvesting in Natural Photosynthetic Proteins.
Kowalska, D, Szalkowski, M, Sulowska, K, Buczynska, D, Niedziolka-Jonsson, J, Jonsson-Niedziolka, M, Kargul, J, Lokstein, H, Mackowski, S
International journal of molecular sciences. 2020;(7)
Abstract
The effects of combining naturally evolved photosynthetic pigment-protein complexes with inorganic functional materials, especially plasmonically active metallic nanostructures, have been a widely studied topic in the last few decades. Besides other applications, it seems to be reasonable using such hybrid systems for designing future biomimetic solar cells. In this paper, we describe selected results that point out to various aspects of the interactions between photosynthetic complexes and plasmonic excitations in Silver Island Films (SIFs). In addition to simple light-harvesting complexes, like peridinin-chlorophyll-protein (PCP) or the Fenna-Matthews-Olson (FMO) complex, we also discuss the properties of large, photosynthetic reaction centers (RCs) and Photosystem I (PSI)-both prokaryotic PSI core complexes and eukaryotic PSI supercomplexes with attached antenna clusters (PSI-LHCI)-deposited on SIF substrates.
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Genetic factors involved in the bioavailability of tomato carotenoids.
Desmarchelier, C, Landrier, JF, Borel, P
Current opinion in clinical nutrition and metabolic care. 2018;(6):489-497
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Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW To provide an update on the genetic factors recently associated with the interindividual variability of tomato carotenoid bioavailability. RECENT FINDINGS Several clinical studies have demonstrated that the main carotenoids found in tomatoes (lycopene, phytoene, phytofluene, β-carotene, lutein) all display relatively large interindividual variabilities of their bioavailability, with coefficients of variations more than 70%. The bioavailability of the parent molecules, and the blood/tissue appearance of their metabolites, is modulated by numerous proteins, involved in intestinal absorption and metabolism, blood lipoprotein transport or tissue uptake. Several single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) have been associated with the interindividual variability of lycopene, lutein and β-carotene bioavailability, with six genes consistently shared between the three carotenoids, and in particular one SNP in ELOVL fatty acid elongase 2. The effects of the genetic variants taken separately are relatively low, that is each variant is usually associated with only a few percentage of the variability but multivariate analyses suggest that the additive effect of several genetic variants can explain a significant fraction of tomato carotenoid bioavailability. SUMMARY Additional studies are needed to improve our knowledge of the genetic determinants of tomato carotenoid bioavailability but progress in this field could one day allow nutritionists to provide more personalized dietary recommendations.
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[Efficacy of lycopene intake in primary prevention of prostate cancer: a systematic review of the literature and meta-analysis.].
Cataño, JG, Trujillo, CG, Caicedo, JI, Bravo-Balado, A, Robledo, D, Mariño-Alvarez, AM, Pedraza, A, Arcila, MJ, Plata, M
Archivos espanoles de urologia. 2018;(2):187-197
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To evaluate the efficacy of lycopene intake in primary prevention of prostate cancer (PCa). METHODS A systematic search of the literature was conducted in March 2015 and the articles published between the years 1990-2015 were reviewed. The following search terms were used: prostate cancer, prostatic neoplasm, lycopene, prevention, effectiveness and efficacy (MeSH). Publications including research in humans, written in English and whose texts were accessible were reviewed. The types of studies included were: clinical trials, cohort and case-control studies. We found 343 articles; of these, 27 were included in the systematic review. After the latter were rigorously analyzed, 23 were included in the meta-analysis using the pooled odds ratios (OR) and risk ratios (RR) of case-control and cohort studies, respectively, and their confidence intervals (95% CI), using random-effects models with Review Manager 5.2. RESULTS Out of the 27 articles included in the systematic review, 22 were case-control and 5 were cohort studies. For the case-control studies, the total number of patients with PCa was 13,999 and the total number of controls 22,028. Cohort studies included 187,417 patients and PCa was diagnosed in 8,619 of these. The metaanalysis determined an OR = 0.94 (IC 95% 0.89-1.00) and RR = 0.9 (IC 95% 0.85-0.95) of PCa related with lycopene and/or raw or cooked tomatoes intake. CONCLUSIONS Although our study found that there is a statistically significant inverse association between lycopene intake and PCa, the magnitude of this association is weak and comes solely from observational studies, which do not allow recommending its use as a standard of practice. High-quality randomized clinical trials are required to clarify current evidence.
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Carotenoid Metabolism in Plants: The Role of Plastids.
Sun, T, Yuan, H, Cao, H, Yazdani, M, Tadmor, Y, Li, L
Molecular plant. 2018;(1):58-74
Abstract
Carotenoids are indispensable to plants and critical in human diets. Plastids are the organelles for carotenoid biosynthesis and storage in plant cells. They exist in various types, which include proplastids, etioplasts, chloroplasts, amyloplasts, and chromoplasts. These plastids have dramatic differences in their capacity to synthesize and sequester carotenoids. Clearly, plastids play a central role in governing carotenogenic activity, carotenoid stability, and pigment diversity. Understanding of carotenoid metabolism and accumulation in various plastids expands our view on the multifaceted regulation of carotenogenesis and facilitates our efforts toward developing nutrient-enriched food crops. In this review, we provide a comprehensive overview of the impact of various types of plastids on carotenoid biosynthesis and accumulation, and discuss recent advances in our understanding of the regulatory control of carotenogenesis and metabolic engineering of carotenoids in light of plastid types in plants.