Canthaxanthin

Structural formula
General
Surname	Canthaxanthin
other names	β, β-carotene-4,4'-dione CI 40850 ( INCI ) CI Food Orange 8 E  161g
Molecular formula	C 40 H 52 O 2
Brief description	purple to red powder
External identifiers / databases
CAS number 514-78-3 EC number 208-187-2 ECHA InfoCard 100.007.444 PubChem 5281227 ChemSpider 4447582 Wikidata Q385657
properties
Molar mass	564.84 g mol −1
Physical state	firmly
solubility	soluble in fats and organic solvents
safety instructions
GHS labeling of hazardous substances no GHS pictograms H and P phrases H: no H-phrases P: no P-phrases
Toxicological data	10,000 mg kg −1 ( LD 50 ,  mouse ,  oral )
As far as possible and customary, SI units are used. Unless otherwise noted, the data given apply to standard conditions .

Canthaxanthin ( E 161g) is a red dye from the group of xanthophylls ( carotenoids ) that is visible in crabs , flamingo feathers and chanterelles and is now technically produced.

Canthaxanthin is one of the major carotenoids in human nutrition as well as in human plasma .

physiology

Canthaxanthin, unlike some other carotenoids, is not converted to vitamin A in the body and is deposited in the eyes in the body.

use

It is fed to salmon trout , for example, to color it, but it is also often added to feed for poultry to give the skin and egg yolks a redder color.

Skin tanning pills that contain canthaxanthin as an active ingredient have been recalled by the pharmaceutical companies because, according to the Federal Health Office, deposits in the retina were feared. Meanwhile, a long-term study showed that the consumption of canthaxanthin does not cause long-term functional damage.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Entry on CI 40850 in the CosIng database of the EU Commission, accessed on June 16, 2020.
2. ↑ Entry on E 161g: Canthaxanthin in the European database on food additives, accessed on June 16, 2020.
3. ↑ ^{a b c d} data sheet canthaxanthin ≥ 95.0% (HPLC) from Sigma-Aldrich , accessed on February 15, 2017 ( PDF ).
4. ↑ Robert Ebermann, Ibrahim Elmadfa: Textbook food chemistry and nutrition . Springer, Vienna 2011, ISBN 978-3-7091-0211-4 , pp. 681 .
5. ^ FU Daubrawa: Effects of astaxanthin and canthaxanthin on cell-cell communication via gap junctions . Düsseldorf 2005, DNB  979445736 , p. 13 , urn : nbn: de: hbz: 061-20060323-001358-2 (dissertation, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf).
6. ↑ Salmon: A feast for the eyes at the expense of the eyesight? EU Commission adopts new regulations for coloring agents as feed additive Press release IP / 03/123 of the European Union, Brussels, January 27, 2003.
7. ↑ Dangerous tanning pills are withdrawn . In: Hamburger Abendblatt . No. 153 , July 5, 1985, pp. 28 ( abendblatt.de [accessed February 15, 2017]).
8. ↑ Clinical study (phase -): Canthaxanthin Retinopathy: A Long-term Observation at Clinicaltrials.gov of the NIH .
9. ↑ A. Hueber, A. Rosentreter, M. Severin: Canthaxanthin Retinopathy: Long-Term Observations . In: Ophthalmic Research . tape 46 , no. 2 , 2011, p. 103-106 , doi : 10.1159 / 000323813 .