• Preventive Nutrition and Food Science
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.1-5
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• 2001

Pigment extracts obtained from Star Ruby grapefruit pulp were stored at different temperatures (4.5$^{\circ}C$, 23$^{\circ}C$) and exposed to light. many carotenoid oxidation products were formed due to light-exposure during storage periods. They were monitored by using HPLC with photodiode array detection and tentatively identified. Including (all-E)-lycopene and trans-$\beta$-carotene as predominant carotenoids in red grapefruit, 5Z-lycopene, 9Z-lycopene, 13Z-lycopene, and 15-cis-$\beta$-carotene were formed at 4.5$^{\circ}C$, 23$^{\circ}C$. Degradation of all-tarns lycopene was more susceptible to light-exposure and temperature a than that of all-trans $\beta$-carotene. The formation of lycopene cis isomers was favored under lighted condition. Respectively, (5Z)-lycopene was formed in greater amounts than other isomers at 23$^{\circ}C$ storage. The concentration of 15-cis-$\beta$-carotene was significantly increased during storage at 23$^{\circ}C$ storage. The concentration of 15-cis-$\beta$-carotene was significantly increased during storage at 23$^{\circ}C$.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.517-524
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• 2015

Human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have been used in cell-based therapy to promote revascularization after peripheral or myocardial ischemia. High levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) are involved in the senescence and apoptosis of MSCs, causing defective neovascularization. Here, we examined the effect of the natural antioxidant lycopene on oxidative stress-induced apoptosis in MSCs. Although $H_2O_2$ ($200{\mu}M$) increased intracellular ROS levels in human MSCs, lycopene ($10{\mu}M$) pretreatment suppressed $H_2O_2$-induced ROS generation and increased survival. $H_2O_2$-induced ROS increased the levels of phosphorylated p38 mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK), Jun-N-terminal kinase (JNK), ataxia telangiectasia mutated (ATM), and p53, which were inhibited by lycopene pretreatment. Furthermore, lycopene pretreatment decreased the expression of cleaved poly (ADP ribose) polymerase-1 (PARP-1) and caspase-3 and increased the expression of B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) and Bcl-2-associated X protein (Bax), which were induced by $H_2O_2$ treatment. Moreover, lycopene significantly increased manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) expression and decreased cellular ROS levels via the PI3K-Akt pathway. Our findings show that lycopene pretreatment prevents ischemic injury by suppressing apoptosis-associated signal pathway and enhancing anti-oxidant protein, suggesting that lycopene could be developed as a beneficial broad-spectrum agent for the successful MSC transplantation in ischemic diseases.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.42 no.3
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• pp.231-238
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• 2015

The present study aimed to investigate the effects of lycopene on hepatic metabolic- and immune-related gene expression in laying hens. A total of 48 25-week-old White Leghorn hens were randomly allocated into four groups consisting of four replicates of three birds: control (basal diet), T1 (basal diet + 10 mg/kg of tomato powder-containing lycopene), T2 (basal diet + 10 mg/kg of micelles of tomato powder-containing lycopene), and T3 (basal diet + 10 mg/kg of purified lycopene). Chickens were fed ad libitum for 5 weeks, and then total RNA was extracted from the livers for quantitative RT-PCR analysis. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor ${\gamma}$ (PPAR${\gamma}$) expression was decreased in the liver of chickens after lycopene supplementation (P<0.05). Micellar lycopene supplementation decreased the expression of PPAR${\gamma}$ target genes including fatty acid binding protein 4 (FABP4) and fatty acids synthase (FASN) in the T2 group (P<0.05). Sterol regulatory element-binding protein 2 (SREBP2) and C/EBP-${\alpha}$ were also downregulated in hens fed with micellar lycopene (P<0.05). Glucose transporter 8 (GLUT-8) was upregulated in the T2 and T3 groups (P<0.05). However, the expression of carnitine palmitoyltransferase 1 (CPT-1) was not changed by lycopene supplementation. Pro-inflammatory cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor ${\alpha}$ (TNF-${\alpha}$) and interleukin 6 (IL-6) were downregulated by lycopene supplementation (P<0.05). These data suggest that the type of lycopene supplementation is critical and that micelles of tomato powder-containing lycopene may play an important role in the modulation of lipid metabolism and immunity in chickens.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.437-443
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• 2003

Epidemiological data suggest that lycopene has anticancer activities in humans. Insulin-like growth factor-I receptor (IGF-IR) is a transmembrane tyrosine kinase that mediates the biological actions of IGFs and may play an active role in cancer progression. Because our previous in vitro studies have indicated lycopene inhibits HT-29 cell growth, the aim of this study was to determine whether lycopene induces apoptotic cell death and the inhibitory effect of lycopene on HT-29 cell growth is related to changes in IGF-IR levels and the receptor's intracellular signalling pathways. HT-29 cells were incubated for 4 days in serum-free medium in the presence of 0, 25, 50, or 100 $\mu$M lycopene, and the DNA fragmentation assay was performed. Cells treated with lycopene produced a distinct oligonucleosomal ladder with different sizes of DNA fragments, a typical characteristic of cells undergoing apoptosis. HT-29 cells were cultured for 4 days in serum-free medium in the presence of 0~100 $\mu$M lycopene and IGF-I (10nM) was added for 0~60 minutes immediately prior to lysate preparations. Western blot analysis of total lysates revealed that lycopene decreased the levels of IRS-1, Akt, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K), and IGF-IR $\beta$-subunit, and increased the levels of the IGF-IR precursor dose dependently. Lycopene also decreased IGF-I-induced phosphorylation of IGF-IR$\beta$, IRS-1 and Akt, which were, at least in part, due to decreased expression of these proteins. These results suggest that lycopene induces apoptosis of HT-29 cells by inhibiting IGF-IR signaling thereby interfering with an IGF-II-driven autocrine growth loop, which is known to exist in this cell line.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.90-95
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• 2006

Escherichia coli harboring pAC-LYCO4 and pDdxs was used for lycopene production. Three wild type strains of E. coli OW1, MG1655, and W3110 were compared with DH5${\alpha}$ used before for lycopene production. Lycopene productivity of E. coli MG1655 was similar to DH5${\alpha}$ and the highest among those wild type strain. Therefore, MG1655 strain was used for random transposon and NTG mutagenesis to increase lycopene productivity. Through transposon mutation, five transposon mutants with increased lycopene productivity were obtained. It was found that genes knocked out by transposon insertion were treB in Tn1 mutant, B2436 in Tn2 mutant, and rfaH in Tn3, 4, and 5 mutants. Lycopene productivity was the highest in Tn4 mutant among the Tn mutants, which was 6-fold and 8-fold higher in lycopene concentration and content, respectively, in comparison with those obtained with wild type strain. NTG4 mutant was acquired with NTG mutation. The highest lycopene productivity of 6 mg/L and 4 mg/g DCW was obtained from the NTG4 mutant when arabinose of 0.013 mM was added for induction of dxs, rate-limiting gene of MEP pathway. The lycopene productivity of NTG4 mutant was increased 18-fold and 12-fold in lycopene concentration and content, respectively when comparing with the wild type strain.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Integrative Medicine
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.1-10
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• 2024

Purpose: Lycopene is abundantly contained in Tomatoes and is known for diverse biological activities such as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer effects. In this study, the antioxidative potential of lycopene was investigated through the induction of hemeoxygenase (HO)-1 by nuclear factor-erythroid 2 p45-related factor2 (Nrf2) and upstream signaling molecules, mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/Aktin RAW 264.7 cells. Methods: The antioxidative potential of lycopene against oxidative stress and its molecular mechanisms were determined by the cell viability assay, intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) formation assay, and Western blot analysis in RAW 264.7 cells. Results: Lycopene treatment significantly attenuated tert-butyl hydroperoxide (t-BHP) induced intracellular ROS formation in a dose-dependent manner without any cytotoxicity. In addition, 50 µM of lycopene for 6 h treatment induced potent HO-1 expression and its transcription factor, Nrf2. MAPK and PI3K/Aktwere also analyzed due to their critical roles in the regulation of cellular redox homeostasis against oxidative damage. As a result, phosphorylation of extracellular regulated kinase (ERK) was significantly induced by lycopene treatment while the activated status of c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase (JNK), p38, and Akt, were not given any effect. To confirm the antioxidative mechanism of HO-1 mediated by ERK activation, each selective inhibitor was employed in a protection assay, in which oxidative damage occurred by t-BHP. Lycopene, SnPP, and CoPP treatments reflected accelerated HO-1 expression could be a protective role against oxidative damage-initiated cell death. A selective inhibitor for ERK significantly inhibited the lycopene-induced cytoprotective effect but selective inhibitors for other signaling molecules did not attenuate the rate of t-BHP-induced cell death. Conclusion: In conclusion, lycopene potently scavenged intracellular ROS formation and enhanced the HO-1 mediated antioxidative potential through the modulation of Nrf2, MAPK signaling pathway in RAW 264.7 cells.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.28 no.7
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• pp.958-965
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• 2015

Lycopene, a red non-provitamin A carotenoid, mainly presenting in tomato and tomato byproducts, has the highest antioxidant activity among carotenoids because of its high number of conjugated double bonds. The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of lycopene supplementation in the diet on plasma lipid profile, lipid peroxidation and antioxidant defense system in feedlot lamb. Twenty-eight Bamei male lambs (90 days old) were divided into four groups and fed a basal diet (LP0, 40:60 roughage: concentrate) or the basal diet supplemented with 50, 100, and 200 mg/kg lycopene. After 120 days of feeding, all lambs were slaughtered and sampled. Dietary lycopene supplementation significantly reduced the levels of plasma total cholesterol (p<0.05, linearly), total triglycerides (TG, p<0.05) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C, p<0.05), as well as atherogenic index (p<0.001), whereas no change was observed in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (p>0.05). The levels of TG (p<0.001) and LDL-C (p<0.001) were decreased with the feeding time extension, and both showed a linear trend (p<0.01). Malondialdehyde level in plasma and liver decreased linearly with the increase of lycopene inclusion levels (p<0.01). Dietary lycopene intake linearly increased the plasma antioxidant vitamin E level (p<0.001), total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC, p<0.05), and activities of catalase (CAT, p<0.01), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px, p<0.05) and superoxide dismutase (SOD, p<0.05). The plasma T-AOC and activities of GSH-Px and SOD decreased with the extension of the feeding time. In liver, dietary lycopene inclusion showed similar antioxidant effects with respect to activities of CAT (p<0.05, linearly) and SOD (p<0.001, linearly). Therefore, it was concluded that lycopene supplementation improved the antioxidant status of the lamb and optimized the plasma lipid profile, the dosage of 200 mg lycopene/kg feed might be desirable for growing lambs to prevent environment stress and maintain normal physiological metabolism.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.45 no.3
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• pp.226-235
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• 2017

Carotenoids such as phytoene, lycopene, and ${\beta}-carotene$ are used as food colorants, animal feed supplements, and for human nutrition and cosmetic purposes. Previously, we reported the isolation of a novel marine bacterium, Kocuria gwangalliensis, which produces a pink-orange pigment. Phytoene desaturase (CrtI), encoded by the gene crtI, catalyzes lycopene formation from phytoene and is an essential enzyme in the early steps of carotenoid biosynthesis. CrtI is one of the key enzymes regulating carotenoid biosynthesis and has been implicated as a rate-limiting enzyme of the pathway in various carotenoid synthesizing organisms. Here, we report the cloning of the crtI gene responsible for lycopene biosynthesis from K. gwangalliensis. The gene consisted of 1,584 bases encoding 527 amino acid residues. The nucleotide sequence of the crtI gene was compared with that of other species, including Kocuria rhizophila and Myxococcus xanthus, and was found to be well conserved during evolution. An expression plasmid containing the crtI gene was constructed (pCcrt1), and Escherichia coli cells were transformed with this plasmid to produce a recombinant protein of approximately 57 kDa, corresponding to the molecular weight of phytoene desaturase. Lycopene biosynthesis was confirmed when the plasmid pCcrtI was co-transformed into E. coli containing the plasmid pRScrtEB carrying the crtE and crtB genes required for lycopene biosynthesis. The results from this study will provide valuable information on the primary structure of K. gwangalliensis CrtI at the molecular level.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.33 no.9
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• pp.1477-1486
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• 2020

Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of different levels of lycopene supplementation on the carcass traits, meat quality, concentration of lipid oxidation products and antioxidant potential in the meat and liver of finishing barrows and gilts. Methods: A total of 40 barrows and 40 gilts were allotted in a completely randomized block design, arranged in a 2×5 factorial scheme, consisting of two sexes (barrows and gilts) and five dietary levels of lycopene (0, 12.5, 25.0, 37.5, and 50.0 mg/kg). In addition, four storage times (0, 24, 48, and 72 h), at 4℃, were added to the model to evaluate the longissimus lumborum muscle. Results: An interaction (p = 0.010) was observed between storage periods and dietary lycopene levels. The unfolding of the interaction (lycopene×period) showed a decreasing concentration of malondialdehyde concentration as the dietary lycopene increased, at all storage periods. No interactions (p>0.050) were observed for the 2,2 diphenyl 1 picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) in the pork. However, the percentage of DPPH radical inhibition reduced (p = 0.001) up to 72 h. Additionally, there was a linear increase (p = 0.001) in the capture of DPPH radicals by antioxidants, as the dietary lycopene increased. No interactions were observed (p>0.05) between the evaluated factors in liver. However, lipid oxidation was reduced by supplementing lycopene in pig diets. The capture of the DPPH radical, resulted increase in the antioxidant power exerted by lycopene in the liver (p = 0.001). The concentrations of the thiobarbituric acid reactive substances and DPPH in the liver were affected by sex (p = 0.001). Conclusion: Dietary supplementation of lycopene reduced the water loss during thawing and was effective in protecting against oxidation of the longissimus lumborum muscle and liver until 72 hours of storage, and the best results were obtained by supplementing with 50.0 mg of lycopene/kg of diet.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.368-376
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• 2014

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: The objectives of this study were to investigate the effects of lycopene on the migration, adhesion, tube formation capacity, and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38 MAPK) activity of endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) cultivated with high glucose (HG) and as well as explore the mechanism behind the protective effects of lycopene on peripheral blood EPCs. MATERIALS/METHODS: Mononuclear cells were isolated from human peripheral blood by Ficoll density gradient centrifugation. EPCs were identified after induction of cellular differentiation. Third generation EPCs were incubated with HG (33 mmol/L) or 10, 30, and $50{\mu}g/mL$ of lycopene plus HG. MTT assay and flow cytometry were performed to assess proliferation and apoptosis of EPCs. EPC migration was assessed by MTT assay with a modified boyden chamber. Adhesion assay was performed by replating EPCs on fibronectin-coated dishes, after which adherent cells were counted. In vitro vasculogenesis activity was assayed by Madrigal network formation assay. Western blotting was performed to analyze protein expression of both phosphorylated and non-phosphorylated p38 MAPK. RESULTS: The proliferation, migration, adhesion, and in vitro vasculogenesis capacity of EPCs treated with 10, 30, and $50{\mu}g/mL$ of lycopene plus HG were all significantly higher comapred to the HG group (P < 0.05). Rates of apoptosis were also significantly lower than that of the HG group. Moreover, lycopene blocked phosphorylation of p38 MAPK in EPCs (P < 0.05). To confirm the causal relationship between MAPK inhibition and the protective effects of lycopene against HG-induced cellular injury, we treated cells with SB203580, a phosphorylation inhibitor. The inhibitor significantly inhibited HG-induced EPC injury. CONCLUSIONS: Lycopene promotes proliferation, migration, adhesion, and in vitro vasculogenesis capacity as well as reduces apoptosis of EPCs. Further, the underlying molecular mechanism of the protective effects of lycopene against HG-induced EPC injury may involve the p38 MAPK signal transduction pathway. Specifically, lycopene was shown to inhibit HG-induced EPC injury by inhibiting p38 MAPKs.