Description
β-Carotene is a red-orange terpene pigment originally found in various plants and fruits; it is a prodrug for vitamin A. It exhibits antioxidative, cytoprotective, anticancer, anti-inflammatory, anti-hyperlipidemic, and anti-obesity activities. β-Carotene is used in research models to quantify antioxidative activity. In bone marrow cells, it protects against radioactive isotope-induced DNA damage. In breast cancer cells, this compound induces cell cycle arrest and apoptosis, decreasing cellular viability. It decreases total cholesterol, VLDL and LDL levels, suppresses expression of SREBP2 and LDL-R, and increases expression of PPARα in vivo. In other animal models, this compound decreases body fat and adipocyte size and suppresses TNF-α-induced inflammation.