Apocarotenal


Apocarotenal, or trans-β-apo-8'-carotenal, is a carotenoid found in spinach and citrus fruits. Like other carotenoids, apocarotenal plays a role as a precursor of vitamin A, even though it has 50% less pro-vitamin A activity than β-carotene. The empirical chemical formula for apocarotenal is C30H40O.
Apocarotenal has an orange to orange-red colour and is used in foods, pharmaceuticals and cosmetic products. Depending on the product forms, apocarotenal is used in fat based food, beverages, dairy products and sweets. Its E number is E160e and it is approved for usage as a food additive in the US, EU and Australia and New Zealand.

Possible carcinogenicity

studies have shown that people with high β-carotene intake and high plasma levels of β-carotene have a significantly reduced risk of lung cancer. However, studies of supplementation with large doses of β-carotene in smokers have shown an increase in cancer risk, possibly because excessive β-carotene results in breakdown products that reduce plasma vitamin A and worsen the lung cell proliferation induced by smoke. The chief β-carotene breakdown product suspected of this behavior is trans-beta-apo-8'-carotenal, which has been found in one study to be mutagenic and genotoxic in cell cultures which do not respond to β-carotene itself.