Indicaxanthin is a type of

betaxanthin Betalains are a class of red and yellow tyrosine-derived pigments found in plants of the order Caryophyllales, where they replace anthocyanin pigments. Betalains also occur in some higher order fungi. They are most often noticeable in the petals ...

, a plant pigment present in

beet The beetroot is the taproot portion of a beet plant, usually known in North America as beets while the vegetable is referred to as beetroot in British English, and also known as the table beet, garden beet, red beet, dinner beet or golden beet ...

s, in ''

Mirabilis jalapa ''Mirabilis jalapa'', the marvel of Peru or four o'clock flower, is the most commonly grown ornamental species of ''Mirabilis'' plant, and is available in a range of colors. ''Mirabilis'' in Latin means wonderful and Jalapa (or Xalapa) is the ...

'' flowers, in cacti such as prickly pears (''

Opuntia ''Opuntia'', commonly called prickly pear or pear cactus, is a genus of flowering plants in the cactus family Cactaceae. Prickly pears are also known as ''tuna'' (fruit), ''sabra'', '' nopal'' (paddle, plural ''nopales'') from the Nahuatl word ...

sp.'') or the red dragonfruit (''

Hylocereus costaricensis ''Selenicereus costaricensis'', synonym ''Hylocereus costaricensis'', known as the Costa Rican pitahaya or Costa Rica nightblooming cactus, is a cactus species native to Central America and north-eastern South America. The species is grown comme ...

''). It is a powerful

antioxidant Antioxidants are compounds that inhibit oxidation, a chemical reaction that can produce free radicals. This can lead to polymerization and other chain reactions. They are frequently added to industrial products, such as fuels and lubricants ...

Medical uses

It has been shown in a spectrophotometric study for patients with

thalassemia Thalassemias are inherited blood disorders characterized by decreased hemoglobin production. Symptoms depend on the type and can vary from none to severe. Often there is mild to severe anemia (low red blood cells or hemoglobin). Anemia can resul ...

, that indicaxanthin can reduce perferryl-Hb generated in solution from met-Hb and

hydrogen peroxide Hydrogen peroxide is a chemical compound with the formula . In its pure form, it is a very pale blue liquid that is slightly more viscous than water. It is used as an oxidizer, bleaching agent, and antiseptic, usually as a dilute solution (3% ...

, more effectively than either

trolox Trolox (6-hydroxy-2,5,7,8-tetramethylchroman-2-carboxylic acid) is a water-soluble analog of vitamin E sold by Hoffman-LaRoche. It is an antioxidant like vitamin E and it is used in biological or biochemical applications to reduce oxidative stres ...

vitamin E Vitamin E is a group of eight fat soluble compounds that include four tocopherols and four tocotrienols. Vitamin E deficiency, which is rare and usually due to an underlying problem with digesting dietary fat rather than from a diet low in vitami ...

derivative) or

vitamin C Vitamin C (also known as ascorbic acid and ascorbate) is a water-soluble vitamin found in citrus and other fruits and vegetables, also sold as a dietary supplement and as a topical 'serum' ingredient to treat melasma (dark pigment spots) a ...

, possibly interfering with perferryl-Hb, a reactive intermediate in the

hydroperoxide Hydroperoxides or peroxols are compounds containing the hydroperoxide functional group (ROOH). If the R is organic, the compounds are called organic hydroperoxides. Such compounds are a subset of organic peroxides, which have the formula ROOR. O ...

-dependent Hb degradation. Indicaxanthin in antioxidant studies was more effective than

Trolox Trolox (6-hydroxy-2,5,7,8-tetramethylchroman-2-carboxylic acid) is a water-soluble analog of vitamin E sold by Hoffman-LaRoche. It is an antioxidant like vitamin E and it is used in biological or biochemical applications to reduce oxidative stres ...

at scavenging the

ABTS In biochemistry, ABTS (2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid)) is a chemical compound used to observe the reaction kinetics of specific enzymes. A common use for it is in the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to detect the ...

cation radical.

References

{{Plant Pigments Food antioxidants Betalains Pyrrolidines Tetrahydropyridines Dicarboxylic acids

Medical uses

See also

References