Lutein transport

Reboul, E. et al.. Lutein transport by Caco-2 TC-7 cells occurs partly by a facilitated process involving the scavenger receptor class B type 1 (SR-Bl), Biochem. J., 387, 455, 2005. 

Castelli, F., S. Caruso, and N. Giuffrida. 1999. Different effects of two structurally similar carotenoids, lutein and beta-carotene, on the thermotropic behaviour of phosphatidylcholine liposomes. Calorimetric evidence of their hindered transport through biomembranes. Thermochim. Acta 327 125-131. 

Carotenoids are also present in animals, including humans, where they are selectively absorbed from diet (Furr and Clark 1997). Because of their hydrophobic nature, carotenoids are located either in the lipid bilayer portion of membranes or form complexes with specific proteins, usually associated with membranes. In animals and humans, dietary carotenoids are transported in blood plasma as complexes with lipoproteins (Krinsky et al. 1958, Tso 1981) and accumulate in various organs and tissues (Parker 1989, Kaplan et al. 1990, Tanumihardjo et al. 1990, Schmitz et al. 1991, Khachik et al. 1998, Hata et al. 2000). The highest concentration of carotenoids can be found in the eye retina of primates. In the retina of the human eye, where two dipolar carotenoids, lutein and zeaxan-thin, selectively accumulate from blood plasma, this concentration can reach as high as 0.1-1.0mM (Snodderly et al. 1984, Landrum et al. 1999). It has been shown that in the retina, carotenoids are associated with lipid bilayer membranes (Sommerburg et al. 1999, Rapp et al. 2000) although, some macular carotenoids may be connected to specific membrane-bound proteins (Bernstein et al. 1997, Bhosale et al. 2004). 

Loane, E., J. M. Nolan et al. (2008). Transport and retinal capture of lutein and zeaxanthin with reference to age-related macular degeneration. Surv. Ophthalmol. 53(1) 68-81. 

So far, we have focused mainly on the potential pathways of carotenoid uptake by the RPE from the choroidal blood supply. As mentioned earlier, POS contain lutein and zeaxanthin, and their distal tips are phagocytosed by the RPE. Therefore POS is another source of xanthophylls in the RPE and this pathway of carotenoid delivery and their further fate can be easily tested in cultured RPE. It has been shown that exposure of RPE cells in vitro to HDL stimulates efflux of phospholipids from phagocytosed POS out of the cell (Ishida et al., 2006). Thus it is of interest to determine whether that transport may potentially include xanthophylls and whether other types of lipoproteins may... 

Connor, WE, Duell, PB, Kean, R, and Wang, Y, 2007. The prime role of HDL to transport lutein into the retina Evidence from HDL-deficient WHAM chicks having a mutant ABCA1 transporter. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 48, 4226—4231. 

Wang, W, Connor, SL, Johnson, EJ, Klein, ML, Hughes, S, and Connor, WE, 2007. Effect of dietary lutein and zeaxanthin on plasma carotenoids and their transport in lipoproteins in age-related macular degeneration. Am J Clin Nutr 85, 762-769. 

The hemolymphal transport of carotenoids by lipophorin has been elucidated and documented (Law and Wells 1989, Tsuchida et al. 1998, Arrese et al. 2001, Canavoso et al. 2001), as has plasma transport by mammalian lipoproteins (Paker 1996, Yeum and Russell 2002). Lipophorin serves as a shuttle that moves carotenoids from one tissue to another without itself entering the cells, in stark contrast to the vertebrate low-density lipoprotein (LDL) (Brown and Goldstein 1986), which is endocytosed and metabolized in the cell. Here, we focus on the recent biochemical and genetic studies of the intracellular CBP of the silkworm, which mainly transports lutein. We hope this review provides insights into the studies of CBPs in other organisms. 

The yellow coloration in the Monarch as well as the larva of three other species of butterfly from South Florida is exclusively due to the specific accumulation of exceptionally high levels of lutein producing a pigmented epidermis. This active accumulation, reminiscent of the specific accumulation that occurs in the primate macula, indicates that butterfly larva is an excellent animal model for the study of carotenoid transport and binding. As such, elucidation of the mechanism of transport and binding of lutein in the epidermis and other tissues of these butterfly larvae may provide insight into xanthophyll uptake within the human eye (Bhosale et al. 2004). 

In the enterocyte, provitamin A carotenoids are immediately converted to vitamin A esters. Carotenoids, vitamin A esters, and other lipophilic compounds are packaged into chylomicrons, which are secreted into lymph and then into the bloodstream. Chylomicrons are attacked by endothelial lipoprotein lipases in the bloodstream, leading to chylomicron remnants, which are taken up by the liver (van den Berg and others 2000). Carotenoids are exported from liver to various tissues by lipoproteins. Carotenes (such as (3-carotene and lycopene) are transported by low-density lipoproteins (LDL) and very low-density lipoproteins (VLDL), whereas xanthophylls (such as lutein, zeax-anthin, and (3-cryptoxanthin) are transported by high-density lipoproteins (HDL) and LDL (Furr and Clark 1997). 

The conjugation of vitamin B12 has been shown to increase oral bioavailability of peptides, proteins, and particles.44 46 62,63 Russsell-Jones and coworkers have attempted to exploit RME of vitamin B12 for the enhanced intestinal uptake of macromolecules such as luteinizing hormone—releasing factor (LHRH), granulocyte colony-stimulating factor, erythropoietin, and a-interferon.44,46,63 Also, they demonstrated that surface modification of nanoparticles with vitamin B12 can increase their intestinal uptake.44,62 The extended applications of this unique transport system, however, appear partially hampered by its limited uptake capacity. In human being, the uptake of vitamin B12 is only 1 nmol per intestinal passage. 

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