Anthocyanin and Lycopene Content Do Not Affect Beta-Carotene Bioefficacy from Multicolored Carrots in Male Mongolian Gerbils

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Abstract Objectives Increasing provitamin A carotenoid consumption is one way to combat vitamin A (VA) deficiency, which is a public health problem in various countries. Multicolored carrots contain provitamin A carotenoids as well as other bioactive phytochemicals, such as anthocyanins and lycopene. Two studies in male Mongolian gerbils were conducted to assess the bioefficacy of β-carotene (BC) with simultaneous consumption of anthocyanins and lycopene from multicolored carrots. Methods In Study 1 (n = 65), BC bioefficacy was compared in gerbils fed diets with a range of lycopene concentrations, sourced from freeze-dried red carrots. Study 2 (n = 66) utilized purple red carrots to create diets with varying anthocyanin content. Each study included positive and negative control groups (n = 10/group) fed white carrot VA-free feeds. Each study included 3-wk VA-depletion, baseline evaluation in 5 or 6 gerbils, and 4-wk treatment periods with 10 gerbils/treatment. HPLC analysis of liver VA stores and serum VA were performed. Results In Study 1, there were no differences among groups. These results may have been influenced by an unanticipated high variation in gerbil starting weight, which was correlated to their final hepatic VA stores. In Study 2, vitamin A liver stores (0.21 ± 0.08 μmol/g) of the treatment groups did not differ from baseline (0.23 ± 0.06 μmol/g) or the positive control group (0.22 ± 0.08 μmol/g), but all groups significantly differed from the negative control group (0.11 ± 0.07μmol/g). Serum retinol concentrations did not correlate with the hepatic VA stores in either study. Conclusions These results confirm previous studies that BC is bioavailable from purple red carrots. The results from Study 2, suggest that simultaneous consumption of carotenoids and anthocyanins do not impact the relative bioavailability of BC. These results add more evidence that serum VA concentrations do not accurately represent hepatic VA stores at deficient to normal concentrations. Funding Sources California Fresh Carrot Advisory Board and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, under award number 2016–51,181-25,400 (PWS).