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Beta-cryptoxanthin is a common carotenoid that is found in fruit, and in human blood and tissues. Foods that are rich in beta-cryptoxanthin include tangerines, persimmons and oranges. Beta-cryptoxanthin has several functions that are important for human health, including roles in antioxidant defense and cell-to-cell communication. Most importantly, beta-cryptoxanthin is a precursor of vitamin A, which is an essential nutrient needed for eyesight, growth, development and immune response. We evaluate the evidence for beta-cryptoxanthin as a vitamin A-forming carotenoid in this paper. Observational, in vitro, animal model and human studies suggest that beta-cryptoxanthin has greater bioavailability from its common food sources than do alpha- and beta-carotene from theirs. Although beta-cryptoxanthin appears to be a poorer substrate for beta-carotene 15,15′ oxygenase than is beta-carotene, animal model and human studies suggest that the comparatively high bioavailability of beta-cryptoxanthin from foods makes beta-cryptoxanthin-rich foods equivalent to beta-carotene-rich foods as sources of vitamin A. These results mean that beta-cryptoxanthin-rich foods are probably better sources of vitamin A, and more important for human health in general, than previously assumed. Published 2014. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Systemic oxidative stress is involved in the development of hypertension, whereas carotenoids are a group of natural antioxidants. Our study aims to evaluate the relationships between the serum concentrations of major carotenoids and mortality in hypertensive adults. Methods and Results Data on 5 serum carotenoids from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) III and NHANES 2001-2006 were included. Outcome measures (all-cause and cardiovascular mortality) were identified from the National Death Index through December 31, 2019. Multiple Cox proportional hazards regression and restricted cubic spline analyses were performed to determine the association between carotenoid levels and outcomes. A total of 8390 hypertensive adults were included in the analysis. At a median follow-up duration of 16.6 years, all-cause and cardiovascular mortality occurred in 4005 (47.74%) and 1205 (14.36%) participants, respectively. Compared with the lowest quartiles, the highest quartiles of 5 major serum carotenoids were associated with lower risk of all-cause mortality, with multivariable-adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) of 0.63 (95% CI, 0.56-0.71) for α-carotene, 0.70 (95% CI, 0.61-0.80); for β-carotene, 0.67 (95% CI, 0.58-0.76); for β-cryptoxanthin, 0.74 (95% CI, 0.64-0.86) for lycopene; and 0.72 (95% CI, 0.63-0.83) for lutein/zeaxanthin. For cause-specific mortality, this association with the fourth quartile of serum carotenoids was evident for a reduced rate of cardiovascular mortality, with a 32% reduction for α-carotene (HR, 0.68 [95% CI, 0.55-0.86]), a 29% reduction for β-cryptoxanthin (HR, 0.71 [95% CI, 0.56-0.89]), and a 26% reduction for lycopene (HR, 0.74 [95% CI, 0.59-0.94]), but not for β-carotene and lutein/zeaxanthin. In addition, we found that serum α-carotene, β-carotene, β-cryptoxanthin, and lutein/zeaxanthin levels were nonlinearly related to all-cause mortality with inflection points of 2.43, 8.49, 5.12, and 14.17 μg/dL, respectively. Serum α-carotene, β-cryptoxanthin, and lutein/zeaxanthin concentrations showed nonlinear associations with cardiovascular mortality with inflection points of 2.31, 5.26, and 15.40 μg/dL, respectively. Conclusions Findings suggest that higher serum carotenoid concentrations were associated with lower risks of all-cause and cardiovascular mortality in hypertensive adults.

Lung cancer is one of the most common cancers worldwide and is the leading cause of cancer-induced death in the USA. Although much attention has been focused on the anti-carcinogenic effect of consuming carotenoid-containing food or supplements, the results have been inconsistent. We investigated whether serum carotenoid levels were associated with the mortality risk of lung cancer in US adults using data from a nationally representative sample. The data were obtained from the Third Nutrition and Health Examination Survey ( NHANES III) database and the NHANES III Linked Mortality File. A total of 10 382 participants aged over 20 years with available serum carotenoid levels and no other missing information on questionnaires and biomarkers at baseline ( NHANES III) were included in the present study. Of the 10 382 participants, 161 subjects died due to lung cancer. We found that high serum levels of alpha-carotene and beta-cryptoxanthin at baseline were significantly associated with a lower risk of lung cancer death. When we stratified the risk by current smoking status, the risk of death of current smokers was significantly decreased to 46% (95% confidence interval, 31-94%) for alpha-carotene and 61% (95% confidence interval, 19-80%) for beta-cryptoxanthin. By contrast, no association was observed among never/former smokers at baseline. High serum levels of alpha-carotene and beta-cryptoxanthin are associated with a lower risk of lung cancer death in US adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main pigments of Capsicum annuum cv. Hanbando and Dabotop in dried red fruits were capsanthin, zeaxanthin, beta-cryptoxanthin and beta-carotene. Total carotenoid contents were twice as high at the fourth harvest compared with the second harvest in both varieties. The ratios of capsanthin to yellow fraction were above 1.0 in Hanbando and below 1.0 in Dabotop. Zeaxanthin content at the third harvest was about three times higher than at the second harvest in Dabotop. ASTA colour values harvested in the second, third and fourth weeks were 114, 152 and 178 in Hanbando and 115, 137 and 140 in Dabotop. Hue value of Hanbando was below 1.0 at all harvests and that of Dabotop was above 1.0 at the second and fourth harvests. The comparison of the C* values of two varieties revealed that Hanbando had the most vivid redness at the fourth harvest, whereas Dabotop was most vivid at the second harvest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]