Lycopene 10% (502-65-8)

Lycopene (502-65-8) video

Lycopene Base Information

Lycopene General Description

Lycopene is a naturally occurring chemical that gives fruits and vegetables a red color. It is one of a number of pigments called carotenoids. Lycopene is found in watermelons, pink grapefruits, apricots, and pink guavas. It is found in particularly high amounts in tomatoes and tomato products. In north America, 85% of dietary lycopene comes from tomato products such as tomato juice or paste. One cup (240 ml) of tomato juice provides about 23 mg of lycopene. Processing raw tomatoes using heat (in the making of tomato juice, tomato paste or ketchup, for example) actually changes the lycopene in the raw product into a form that is easier for the body to use. The lycopene in supplements is about as easy for the body to use as lycopene found in food. People Take lycopene for preventing heart disease, “hardening of the arteries” (atherosclerosis); and cancer of the prostate, breast, lung, bladder, ovaries, colon, and pancreas. Lycopene is also used for treating human papilloma virus (hpv) infection, which is a major cause of uterine cancer. Some people also use lycopene for cataracts and asthma.

Lycopene (502-65-8) History

Lycopene is a symmetrical tetraterpene assembled from eight isoprene units. It is a member of the carotenoid family of compounds, and because it consists entirely of carbon and hydrogen, is also a carotene. Isolation procedures for lycopene were first reported in 1910, and the structure of the molecule wasdetermined by 1931. In its natural, all-trans form, the molecule is long and straight, constrained by its system of 11 conjugated double bonds. Each extension in this conjugated system reduces the energy required for electrons to transition to higher energy states, allowing the molecule to absorb visible light of progressively longer wavelengths. Lycopene absorbs all but the longest wavelengths of visible light, so it appears red.

Lycopene Mechanism Of Action

Antioxidant Activity

Oxidative stress is recognized as one of the major contributors to the increased risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer. Among the common carotenoids lycopene stands as the most potent antioxidant as demonstrated by in vitro experimental systems.1 Based on this study the antioxidant potency of carotenoids can be ranked as follows:  lycopene > [is greater than] alpha-tocopherol > alpha-carotene > beta-cryptoxanthin > zeaxanthin > beta-carotene > lutein. Mixtures of carotenoids were more effective than the single compounds.19 This synergistic effect was most pronounced when lycopene or lutein was present. The superior protection of mixtures may be related to the specific positioning of different carotenoids in cell membranes.

Several studies of tomato consumption demonstrate the antioxidant properties in humans. For example, recently it was found that daily consumption of a tomato product containing 15 mg lycopene plus other tomato phytonutrients significantly enhanced the protection of lipoproteins from ex vivo oxidative stress.43 These results indicate that lycopene absorbed from tomato products may act as an in vivo antioxidant.

Inhibition of cancer cell proliferation (cell cycle)

Lycopene has been found to inhibit proliferation of several types of cancer cells, including those of breast, prostate, lung, and endometrium. The inhibitory effects of lycopene on mammary and prostate cancer cell growth were not accompanied by apoptotic (programmed) or necrotic (resulting from injury or disease) cell death, a mechanism related to the action of some drugs but not to micronutrients frequently consumed in the human diet. This effect was accompanied by inhibition of cell cycle progression from the G0/G1 to the S phase as measured by flow cytometry.3 The inhibition of cell proliferation correlated with a decrease in cyclin D1 protein levels which is a key regulator of this process. It is well documented that growth factors affect the cell cycle apparatus (primarily during G1 phase) and that the main components acting as growth factor sensors are the D-type cyclins.44 Moreover, cyclin D1 is known to act as an oncogene (a gene whose dysregulation causes normal cells to become cancerous) and is found to be over-expressed in many breast cancer cell lines as well as in primary tumors.45 Thus, the decrease in cellular cyclin D1 level by lycopene provides a mechanistic explanation for the anticancer activity of the carotenoid.

Interference with growth factors stimulation of cancer cell proliferation

The growth stimulation of mammary cancer cells by insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) was markedly reduced by physiological concentrations of lycopene in experimental in vitro studies.2, 46 The significance of this finding for cancer prevention is related to independent epidemiological findings that elevated IGF-1 levels increase lifetime risks of breast and prostate cancer.47, 48 If lycopene interference with IGF-1 stimulation of tumor cell growth is confirmed in clinical studies, this would provide a strong rationale for recommending increased intake of lycopene, particularly via tomato-based food products, for cancer prevention.

Lycopene (502-65-8) Application

Lycopene has been used:

in high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) to determine its concentration in liver, kidney and lung tissue

to induce urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR) IN prostate cancer cell line

in Raman chemical imaging system to detect and visualize its internal distribution

Lycopene (502-65-8) More research

A 2017 review concluded that tomato products and lycopene supplementationhad small positive effects on cardiovascular risk factors, such as elevated blood lipids and blood pressure. A 2010 review concluded that research has been insufficient to establish whether lycopene consumption affects human health.Lycopene has been studied in basic and clinical research for its potential effects on cardiovascular diseases and prostate cancer, although results through 2017 have not changed the prevailing FDA view that evidence of benefit remains inconclusive.

Lycopene (502-65-8) Reference

Trending Articles