Intestinal absorption of lycopene from different foods

Abstract

Lycopene is the main carotenoid in tomatoes. With its eleven linearly arranged conjugated double bonds it shows high antioxidant activity. Recent epidemiological studies implicate lycopene in the prevention of cardiovascular diseases and cancer. Human intervention studies (6 w or 4 w intervention period) with 5 mg/d or 12.5 mg/d of lycopene comprised in tomatoes, tomato juice, tomato purée and tomato oleoresin capsules showed a good intestinal absorption of lycopene. These results indicate an improved availability of lycopene comprised in heated or processed food due to the dissociation of the protein-carotenoid complexes. Additionally, lipids in the diet increase the absorption of carotenoids. In another intervention study (4 w) with 5