Team:Uppsala/betacarotene
From 2013.igem.org
β-carotene
![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2013/0/00/Uppsala2013_beta-caroteneSymbol.png)
β-carotene is a common carotenoid that derives from the xanthophyll group known for its characteristic orange color. β-carotene can be found in fruits and vegetables, for example carrots. β-carotene is a provitamin to vitamin A, which means that during the right circumstances β-carotene can be catalyzed further to produce vitamin A. Vitamin A has several important health aspects which includes skin, mucus membrane and most common to people a good effect on eyes and vision. Studies have shown that the carotenoid can prevent aging of the brain and stimulate it to keep its capability of memory when a high ascorbic acid concentration also is present [1]. The health aspects were an important part of our choice to produce β-carotene.
![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2013/f/f4/Uppsala2013_Beta-carotene-molecule.png)
Methods
The gene CrtY that is responsible for translating the protein lycopene cyclase was obtained from the zeaxanthin operon provided by Slovenia iGEM team 2010. Production of β-carotene is initiated through the catalytic reaction done by the enzyme lycopene cyclase which uses the precursor lycopene.
![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2013/d/d2/Uppsala2013_Beta-caroten-plasmid.png)
Results
Beta carotene production was proven through the production of our operon containing zeaxanthin. Since production of zeaxanthin relies on beta carotene as a precursor we could simultaneously prove that we successfully had produced both zeaxanthin and beta carotene through liquid-liquid separation and spectrophotometry (read spectrophotometry of zeaxanthin for more results)
References
[1]Perrig WJ, Perrig P, Stähelin HB Institute of Psychology, University of Berne, Switzerland. The relation between antioxidants and memory performance in the old and very old, J Am Geriatr Soc. 1997 Jun;45(6):718-24.