Carotene
Carotenoids are a type of pigment that ranges in colour from red to
yellow and are widely dispersed in bacteria, algae, fungi, and plants.
Carotenoids are a class of lipid-soluble compounds linked to the lipidic
fractions that are sensitive to oxygen, heat and light (Kirti et al.,
2014). Carotenoid serves as a significant part in the photosynthetic
process. It absorbs light energy ranging from 300 to 600 nm to drive the
photosynthetic process (Kusmita et al., 2017). The production of
carotenoids by using some marine yeast (Rhodotorula spp.) and
some filamentous fungi (M. purpureus ) is capable of synthesizing
specific types of carotenoids (torularhodin, -carotene and torulene)
that have shown pro-vitamin and antioxidant properties. They have been
used as food colourants, cosmetics, and feed additives, and their other
biological importance is given in Table. 2 (Velmurugan et al., 2020).
Furthermore, carotenoids can act as shelters for photosynthetic
organisms to protect them from hazardous exposure (Kusmita et al.,
2017). From a chemical point of view, carotenoid is a polyisoprenoid
compound with two main groups: Carotenes are hydrocarbon carotenoid
compounds made up of carbon and hydrogen atoms, whereas xanthophylls are
oxygenated hydrocarbon derivatives with one oxygen functional moieties
such as hydroxyl, keto and epoxy, methoxy, or carboxylic acid groups.
Carotenoids are not only beneficial for pigmentation, but they also
offer unique photochemical properties that provide the basis for their
application as nutritional components, vitamin A precursor, prevention
of human diseases like cancer, and an industrial perspective (Kirti et
al., 2014).
Marine carotenoids can be used as skin photo protection against the
damaging effects of UV radiation or as a nutraceutical/cosmeceutical
ingredient to treat oxidative stress-related illnesses because they have
potent antioxidant, healing, antiproliferative, and anti-inflammatory
properties. Some carotenoid compounds are produced by marine species
known as astaxanthin (red pigment), and they possess significant
anti-free radical and pro-oxidant activity. Fucoxanthin is one of the
most prevalent carotenoids in nature, especially in the marine
environment, and it accounts for around 10% of total carotenoid
production. Carotenoids like fucoxanthin, zeaxanthin, and lutein have
antioxidant capabilities like ROS scavenging, DNA damage protection,
protein and lipid oxidation protection. Canthaxanthin is a carotenoid
that is derived from crustaceans and algae and can be used as anticancer
agent in human colon adenocarcinoma cells, human and murine melanoma
cells (SK-MEL-2, JB/MS, and B16F10), and fibro sarcoma cells (SK-MEL-2,
JB/MS, and B16F10) (PYB6) (Galasso et al., 2017).