β-carotene

Also known as 1,1'-[(1E,3E,5E,7E,9E,11E,13E,15E,17E)-3,7,12,16-tetramethyloctadeca-1,3,5,7,9,11,13,15,17-nonaene-1,18-diyl]bis(2,6,6-trimethylcyclohexene), beta-Karotin, all-trans-beta-carotene, 1,3,3-trimethyl-2-[(1E,3E,5E,7E,9E,11E,13E,15E,17E)-3,7,12,16-tetramethyl-18-(2,6,6-trimethyl-1-cyclohexenyl)octadeca-1,3,5,7,9,11,13,15,17-nonaenyl]cyclohexene

Chemical data

Formula: C40H56
Molecular weight: 536.9 g/mol
IUPAC name: 1,3,3-trimethyl-2-[(1E,3E,5E,7E,9E,11E,13E,15E,17E)-3,7,12,16-tetramethyl-18-(2,6,6-trimethylcyclohexen-1-yl)octadeca-1,3,5,7,9,11,13,15,17-nonaenyl]cyclohexene
SMILES: CC1=C(C(CCC1)(C)C)/C=C/C(=C/C=C/C(=C/C=C/C=C(/C=C/C=C(/C=C/C2=C(CCCC2(C)C)C)\C)\C)/C)/C
InChIKey: OENHQHLEOONYIE-JLTXGRSLSA-N
XLogP: 13.5
Polar surface area: 0 Å²
H-bond donors: 0
H-bond acceptors: 0
Formal charge: 0

via PubChem

Research

19,971 papers

~14 min read

Article

21 sections

Contents

Provitamin A activity
Absorption, metabolism and excretion
Conversion factors
Retinol activity equivalents (RAEs)
International Units
Dietary sources
No dietary requirement
Side effects
Carotenosis
No risk for hypervitaminosis A
Drug interactions
β-Carotene and lung cancer in smokers
Industrial sources
Research
Macular degeneration
Cancer
Cataract
Erythropoietic protoporphyria
Food drying
See also
References

β-Carotene (beta-carotene) is an organic, strongly colored red-orange pigment abundant in fungi, plants, and fruits. It is a member of the carotenes, which are terpenoids (isoprenoids), synthesized biochemically from eight isoprene units and thus having 40 carbons.

Dietary β-carotene is a provitamin compound, converting in the body to retinol (vitamin A). In foods, it has rich content in carrots, pumpkin, spinach, and sweet potato. It is used as a dietary supplement and may be prescribed to treat erythropoietic protoporphyria, an inherited condition of sunlight sensitivity.