Soy isoflavones, genistein, daidzein and its metabolite equol, as well as β-carotene have been reported to be effective for maintaining bone health. However, it remains to be elucidated whether combining soy isoflavones with β-carotene is beneficial to bone formation. This study investigated the combined effect of soy isoflavones and β-carotene on the differentiation of MC3T3-E1 preosteoblastic...

The relationship between carotenoid accumulation and expression of carotenoid biosynthesis genes was investigated in the flowers, stems, young leaves, old leaves, and roots of Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa subsp. pekinensis). Quantitative real-time PCR analysis showed that the mRNA levels of BrPSY, BrPDS, BrZDS, BrLCYB, BrLCYE, BrCHXB, and BrZEP leading to the production of carotenoids were hi...

Lycopene cyclases cyclize the open ends of acyclic lycopene (ψ,ψ-carotene) into β- or ε-ionone rings in the crucial bifurcation step of carotenoid biosynthesis. Among all carotenoid constituents, β-carotene (β,β-carotene) is found in all photosynthetic organisms, except for purple bacteria and heliobacteria, suggesting a ubiquitous distribution of lycopene β-cyclase activity in these organisms....

BACKGROUND Retinoids are lipophilic isoprenoids composed of a cyclic group and a linear chain with a hydrophilic end group. These compounds include retinol, retinal, retinoic acid, retinyl esters, and various derivatives of these structures. Retinoids are used as cosmetic agents and effective pharmaceuticals for skin diseases. Retinal, an immediate precursor of retinoids, is derived by β-carote...

Animal studies were conducted to evaluate the influence of dietary spice compounds, piperine, capsaicin and ginger, on the absorption of orally administered β-carotene and its conversion to vitamin A. In rats maintained on these spice-containing diets for 8 weeks, concentrations of β-carotene and retinol were determined in the serum, liver and intestine 4 h after a single oral administration of...

BACKGROUND: Vitamin A which is found in different tissuesand organs plays a particular role in detecting clinical signs invarious deficiency conditions. However, sometimes the marginaldeficiency is present in a way that clinical signs are not visible butperformance defects, such as infertility is seen. OBJECTIVES: Inthis study, the normal baseline levels of vitamin Aand β-carotene inclinically ...

The effects of six different polyglycerol esters of fatty acids (PGEs) as nonionic emulsi fiers on the physicochemical properties and stability of β-carotene nanoparticles in oil-in-water dispersions prepared by solvent displacement technique were investigated. The β-carotene particle size was measured by a laser diffraction technique, and the stability and retention of β-carotene during storag...

The aim of this study is the application of pumpkin puree (PP) in the formulation of a traditional date cookie in order to promote its sensory and cooking qualities. In addition its nutritional value due to the on pumpkin β-carotene content is improved. Date was replaced with pumpkin puree with different ratios (0, 5, 10, 20 and 25 %) as a filling and its effect was investigated on the physicoc...