Meeting the Vitamin A Requirement: The Efficacy and Importance of β-Carotene in Animal Species
Vitamin A is essential for life in all vertebrate animals. Vitamin A requirement can be met from dietary preformed vitamin A or provitamin A carotenoids, the most important of which is β-carotene. The metabolism of β-carotene, including its intestinal absorption, accumulation in tissues, and convers...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Wiley
2016-01-01
|
| Series: | The Scientific World Journal |
| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2016/7393620 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1832559819716820992 |
|---|---|
| author | Alice S. Green Andrea J. Fascetti |
| author_facet | Alice S. Green Andrea J. Fascetti |
| author_sort | Alice S. Green |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Vitamin A is essential for life in all vertebrate animals. Vitamin A requirement can be met from dietary preformed vitamin A or provitamin A carotenoids, the most important of which is β-carotene. The metabolism of β-carotene, including its intestinal absorption, accumulation in tissues, and conversion to vitamin A, varies widely across animal species and determines the role that β-carotene plays in meeting vitamin A requirement. This review begins with a brief discussion of vitamin A, with an emphasis on species differences in metabolism. A more detailed discussion of β-carotene follows, with a focus on factors impacting bioavailability and its conversion to vitamin A. Finally, the literature on how animals utilize β-carotene is reviewed individually for several species and classes of animals. We conclude that β-carotene conversion to vitamin A is variable and dependent on a number of factors, which are important to consider in the formulation and assessment of diets. Omnivores and herbivores are more efficient at converting β-carotene to vitamin A than carnivores. Absorption and accumulation of β-carotene in tissues vary with species and are poorly understood. More comparative and mechanistic studies are required in this area to improve the understanding of β-carotene metabolism. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-393812c6712344c286263deb34568f67 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2356-6140 1537-744X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2016-01-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | The Scientific World Journal |
| spelling | doaj-art-393812c6712344c286263deb34568f672025-02-03T01:29:01ZengWileyThe Scientific World Journal2356-61401537-744X2016-01-01201610.1155/2016/73936207393620Meeting the Vitamin A Requirement: The Efficacy and Importance of β-Carotene in Animal SpeciesAlice S. Green0Andrea J. Fascetti1Department of Molecular Biosciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USADepartment of Molecular Biosciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USAVitamin A is essential for life in all vertebrate animals. Vitamin A requirement can be met from dietary preformed vitamin A or provitamin A carotenoids, the most important of which is β-carotene. The metabolism of β-carotene, including its intestinal absorption, accumulation in tissues, and conversion to vitamin A, varies widely across animal species and determines the role that β-carotene plays in meeting vitamin A requirement. This review begins with a brief discussion of vitamin A, with an emphasis on species differences in metabolism. A more detailed discussion of β-carotene follows, with a focus on factors impacting bioavailability and its conversion to vitamin A. Finally, the literature on how animals utilize β-carotene is reviewed individually for several species and classes of animals. We conclude that β-carotene conversion to vitamin A is variable and dependent on a number of factors, which are important to consider in the formulation and assessment of diets. Omnivores and herbivores are more efficient at converting β-carotene to vitamin A than carnivores. Absorption and accumulation of β-carotene in tissues vary with species and are poorly understood. More comparative and mechanistic studies are required in this area to improve the understanding of β-carotene metabolism.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2016/7393620 |
| spellingShingle | Alice S. Green Andrea J. Fascetti Meeting the Vitamin A Requirement: The Efficacy and Importance of β-Carotene in Animal Species The Scientific World Journal |
| title | Meeting the Vitamin A Requirement: The Efficacy and Importance of β-Carotene in Animal Species |
| title_full | Meeting the Vitamin A Requirement: The Efficacy and Importance of β-Carotene in Animal Species |
| title_fullStr | Meeting the Vitamin A Requirement: The Efficacy and Importance of β-Carotene in Animal Species |
| title_full_unstemmed | Meeting the Vitamin A Requirement: The Efficacy and Importance of β-Carotene in Animal Species |
| title_short | Meeting the Vitamin A Requirement: The Efficacy and Importance of β-Carotene in Animal Species |
| title_sort | meeting the vitamin a requirement the efficacy and importance of β carotene in animal species |
| url | http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2016/7393620 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT alicesgreen meetingthevitaminarequirementtheefficacyandimportanceofbcaroteneinanimalspecies AT andreajfascetti meetingthevitaminarequirementtheefficacyandimportanceofbcaroteneinanimalspecies |