Letter to the editor

Current results on the potential health benefits of lutein

Jae Kwang Kim1, Sang Un Park2[*]

1Division of Life Sciences, College of Life Sciences and Bioengineering, Incheon National University, Incheon, 406-772, Korea

2Department of Crop Science, Chungnam National University, 99 Daehak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, 305-764, Korea

EXCLI J 2016;15:Doc308

 

Dear Editor,

Lutein is a nutritionally beneficial organic tetraterpenoid pigment; its molecular formula and weight are C40H56O2 and 568.87144 g/mol, respectively. It is responsible for the yellow color of fruits and vegetables and is found in high levels in parsley, spinach, kale, egg yolk, and lutein-fortified foods (Shegokar and Mitri, 2012[29]).

Lutein has a wide range of beneficial health effects including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antiatherogenic, antihypertensive, antidiabetic, antiulcer, and anticancer effects (Miyazawa et al., 2013[22]; Johnson, 2014[13]; Erdman et al., 2015[8]; Manayi et al., 2015[19]). Furthermore, it is used to prevent eye diseases including age-related macular degeneration (AMD), cataract, and retinitis pigmentosa (Koushan et al., 2013[15]; Sulich et al., 2015[34]).

The commercial value of lutein is growing with the customary age-related macular degeneration applications. The lutein market is segmented into pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, food, pet foods, cosmetics, and animal and fish feed. Lutein shows a range of biological activities and health benefits in animals; therefore, herein, we have reviewed the most recent studies on lutein and its biological and pharmacological activities (Table 1(Tab. 1); References in Table 1: Song et al., 2015[32]; Sheshappa et al., 2015[30]; Crichton et al., 2015[6]; Lieblein-Boff et al., 2015[17]; Du et al., 2015[7]; Cheng et al., 2015[4]; Qiu et al., 2015[25]; Fatani et al., 2015[9]; Wu et al., 2015[44]; Huang et al., 2015[12]; Li et al., 2015[16]; Han et al., 2015[11]; Rafi et al., 2015[26]; Tian et al., 2015[37]; Casaroli-Marano et al., 2015[2]; Wang et al., 2014[42]; Niesor et al., 2014[23]; Su et al., 2014[33]; Sun et al., 2014[35]; Kon et al., 2014[14]; Promphet et al., 2014[24]; Furlani et al., 2014[10]; Serpeloni et al., 2014[28]; Matsumoto et al., 2014[20]; Vishwanathan et al., 2014[40]; Sen et al., 2014[27]; Min and Min, 2014[21]; Ma et al., 2014[18]; Xu et al., 2013[45]; Binawade et al., 2013[1]; Chang et al., 2013[3]; Tian et al., 2013[38]; Yajima et al., 2013[47]; Sung et al., 2013[36]; Costa et al., 2013[5]; Wang et al., 2013[41]; Yao et al., 2013[48]; Xu et al., 2013[46]; Vijayapadma et al., 2014[39]; Woo et al., 2013[43]; Sindhu et al., 2012[31]).

Acknowledgements

This research was supported by Golden Seed Project funded by Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (MAFRA), Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF), Rural Development Administration (RDA) and Korea Forest Service (KFS).

Conflict of interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

 

References

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20. Matsumoto M, Hagio M, Inoue R, Mitani T, Yajima M, Hara H, et al. Long-term oral feeding of lutein-fortified milk increases voluntary running distance in rats. PLoS One. 2014;9:e93529.
21. Min JY, Min KB. Serum lycopene, lutein and zeaxanthin, and the risk of Alzheimer's disease mortality in older adults. Dement Geriatr Cogn Disord. 2014;37:246-56.
22. Miyazawa T, Nakagawa K, Kimura F, Nakashima Y, Maruyama I, Higuchi O, et al. Chlorella is an effective dietary source of lutein for human erythrocytes. J Oleo Sci. 2013;62:773-9.
23. Niesor EJ, Chaput E, Mary JL, Staempfli A, Topp A, Stauffer A, et al. Effect of compounds affecting ABCA1 expression and CETP activity on the HDL pathway involved in intestinal absorption of lutein and zeaxanthin. Lipids. 2014;49:1233-43.
24. Promphet P, Bunarsa S, Sutheerawattananonda M, Kunthalert D. Immune enhancement activities of silk lutein extract from Bombyx mori cocoons. Biol Res. 2014;47:15.
25. Qiu X, Gao DH, Xiang X, Xiong YF, Zhu TS, Liu LG, et al. Ameliorative effects of lutein on non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in rats. World J Gastroenterol. 2015;21:8061-72.
26. Rafi MM, Kanakasabai S, Gokarn SV, Krueger EG, Bright JJ. Dietary lutein modulates growth and survival genes in prostate cancer cells. J Med Food. 2015;18:173-81.
27. Sen A, Marsche G, Freudenberger P, Schallert M, Toeglhofer AM, Nagl C, et al. Association between higher plasma lutein, zeaxanthin, and vitamin C concentrations and longer telomere length: results of the Austrian Stroke Prevention Study. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2014;62:222-9.
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31. Sindhu ER, Kuttan R. Carotenoid lutein protects rats from gastric ulcer induced by ethanol. J Basic Clin Physiol Pharmacol. 2012;23:33-7.
32. Song MH, Shin EC, Hwang DY, Jang IS. Effects of lutein or lutein in combination with vitamin C on mRNA expression and activity of antioxidant enzymes and status of the antioxidant system in SD rats. Lab Anim Res. 2015;31:117-24.
33. Su CC, Chan CM, Chen HM, Wu CC, Hsiao CY, Lee PL, et al. Lutein inhibits the migration of retinal pigment epithelial cells via cytosolic and mitochondrial Akt pathways (lutein inhibits RPE cells migration). Int J Mol Sci. 2014;15:13755-67.
34. Sulich A, Hamułka J, Nogal D. Dietary sources of lutein in adults suffering eye disease (AMD/cataracts). Rocz Panstw Zakl Hig. 2015;66:55-60.
35. Sun YX, Liu T, Dai XL, Zheng QS, Hui BD, Jiang ZF. Treatment with lutein provides neuroprotection in mice subjected to transient cerebral ischemia. J Asian Nat Prod Res. 2014;16:1084-93.
36. Sung JH, Jo YS, Kim SJ, Ryu JS, Kim MC, Ko HJ, et al. Effect of lutein on L-NAME-induced hypertensive rats. Korean J Physiol Pharmacol. 2013;17:339-45.
37. Tian Y, Kijlstra A, van der Veen RL, Makridaki M, Murray IJ, Berendschot TT. Lutein supplementation leads to decreased soluble complement membrane attack complex sC5b-9 plasma levels. Acta Ophthalmol. 2015;93:141-5.
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40. Vishwanathan R, Kuchan MJ, Sen S, Johnson EJ. Lutein and preterm infants with decreased concentrations of brain carotenoids. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr. 2014;59:659-65.
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43. Woo TT, Li SY, Lai WW, Wong D, Lo AC. Neuroprotective effects of lutein in a rat model of retinal detachment. Graefes Arch Clin Exp Ophthalmol. 2013;251:41-51.
44. Wu W, Li Y, Wu Y, Zhang Y, Wang Z, Liu X. Lutein suppresses inflammatory responses through Nrf2 activation and NF-κB inactivation in lipopolysaccharide-stimulated BV-2 microglia. Mol Nutr Food Res. 2015;59:1663-73.
45. Xu X, Hang L, Huang B, Wei Y, Zheng S, Li W. Efficacy of ethanol extract of Fructus lycii and its constituents Lutein/Zeaxanthin in protecting retinal pigment epithelium cells against oxidative stress: in vivo and in vitro models of age-related macular degeneration. J Ophthalmol. 2013;2013:862806.
46. Xu XR, Zou ZY, Xiao X, Huang YM, Wang X, Lin XM. Effects of lutein supplement on serum inflammatory cytokines, ApoE and lipid profiles in early atherosclerosis population. J Atheroscler Thromb. 2013;20:170-7.
47. Yajima M, Matsumoto M, Harada M, Hara H, Yajima T. Effects of constant light during perinatal periods on the behavioral and neuronal development of mice with or without dietary lutein. Biomed Res. 2013;34:197-204.
48. Yao Y, Qiu QH, Wu XW, Cai ZY, Xu S, Liang XQ. Lutein supplementation improves visual performance in Chinese drivers: 1-year randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Nutrition. 2013;29:958-64.
 
 
 

Table 1: Recent studies on lutein and its biological and pharmacological activities

[*] Corresponding Author:

Sang Un Park, Department of Crop Science, Chungnam National University, 99 Daehak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, 305-764, Korea; Phone: +82-42-821-5730, Fax: +82-42-822-2631, eMail: supark@cnu.ac.kr