Abstract
The marine carotenoid fucoxanthin can be found in marine brown seaweeds, the macroalgae, and diatoms, the microalgae, and has remarkable biological properties. Numerous studies have shown that fucoxanthin has considerable potential and promising applications in human health. In this article, we review the current available scientific literature regarding the metabolism, safety, and bioactivities of fucoxanthin, including its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, anti-obese, antidiabetic, antiangiogenic and antimalarial activities, and its protective effects on the liver, blood vessels of the brain, bones, skin, and eyes. Although some studies have shown the bioavailability of fucoxanthin in brown seaweeds to be low in humans, many studies have suggested that a dietary combination of fucoxanthin and edible oil or lipid could increase the absorption rate of fucoxanthin, and thus it might be a promising marine drug.
Highlights
Fucoxanthin is one of the most abundant carotenoids, and contributes more than 10% of the estimated total production of carotenoids in nature, especially in the marine environment [1].Fucoxanthin is an orange-colored pigment, along with chlorophylls a and c and β-carotene, present inMar
Fucoxanthin has been isolated for its bioactivity studies from the marine brown seaweeds Alaria crassifolia [8], Cladosiphon okamuranus [9], Cystoseira hakodatensis [8,10], Eisenia bicyclis [8], Fucus serratus [11], Fucus vesiculosus [12], Hijikia fusiformis [13,14], Ishige okamurae [15], Kjellmaniella crassifolia [8], Laminaria japonica [16,17,18], Laminaria ochotensis [18], Myagropsis myagroides [19], Padina tetrastromatica [6], Petalonia binghamiae [20], Sargassum fulvellum [14], Sargassum heterophyllum [21], Sargassum horneri [10], Sargassum siliquastrum [22], and Undaria pinnatifida [10,14,23,24,25,26,27,28,29,30,31,32], and the diatoms
The results showed that fucoxanthin and β-carotene protected cell membrane by decreasing Na+K+-ATPase activity and increasing the activities of catalase and glutathione transferase at the tissue and microsomal level affected by retinol deficiency possibly due to its antioxidant activity, protecting membranes against lipid peroxidation caused by retinol deficiency
Summary
Fucoxanthin is one of the most abundant carotenoids, and contributes more than 10% of the estimated total production of carotenoids in nature, especially in the marine environment [1]. Fucoxanthin was first isolated from the marine brown seaweeds. Fucoxanthin has been isolated for its bioactivity studies from the marine brown seaweeds Alaria crassifolia [8], Cladosiphon okamuranus [9], Cystoseira hakodatensis [8,10], Eisenia bicyclis [8], Fucus serratus [11], Fucus vesiculosus [12], Hijikia fusiformis [13,14], Ishige okamurae [15], Kjellmaniella crassifolia [8], Laminaria japonica [16,17,18], Laminaria ochotensis [18], Myagropsis myagroides [19], Padina tetrastromatica [6], Petalonia binghamiae [20], Sargassum fulvellum [14], Sargassum heterophyllum [21], Sargassum horneri [10], Sargassum siliquastrum [22], and Undaria pinnatifida [10,14,23,24,25,26,27,28,29,30,31,32], and the diatoms. This article reviews the current available scientific literature regarding the metabolism, safety, and bioactivities of fucoxanthin, including its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, anti-obese, antidiabetic, antiangiogenic and antimalarial activities, and its protective effects on the liver, blood vessels of the brain, bones, skin, and eyes
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