DISTRIBUTION OF DIETARY PALM CAROTENES AND THEIR METABOLITES IN THE RABBIT

The distributions of dietary palm carotenes and their metabolites in r abbit's plasma and organs were determined using non-aqueous reversed p hase high performance liquid chromatography and a photodiode array det ector. Rabbits fed with diets enriched with palm carotenes 309 mg/kg d iet were found to have the different various carotenes in varying amou nts in their plasma and organ tissues, mainly in the liver and adrenal glands. Most of the supplemented alpha-and beta-carotenes were metabo lized to retinol and retinyl esters, which were mainly stored in the l iver and to a lesser extent, the pancreas. Small amounts of other caro tenes such as phytoene, phytofluene and zeta-carotene, were present in the rabbit's plasma and organ tissues. The contents of retinol and re tinyl esters in the liver of rabbits fed diets supplemented with palm carotenes were respectively 3 and 30 times higher than that in the rab bit groups fed diets without palm carotenes. The major retinyl esters present in the organ tissues were retinyl palmitate, oleate and linole ate, whereas only retinyl palmitate and stearate were found to be in p redominant in the plasma. epsilon-Retinyl esters, which are metabolite s from or-carotene, were also found to be present in the liver and pan creas. For rabbits fed with diets enriched with palm carotenes but dep leted of palm vitamin E, relatively small amounts of carotenes and ret inyl esters were detected (only in the plasma and liver), indicating t hat vitamin E substantially affects the disposition of dietary caroten es and their metabolites in plasma and tissues of rabbits. (C) 1997 El sevier Science Inc.