Cis-Trans Isomers of .BETA.-Carotene in Fresh Vegetables and Fruits.

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

The composition of cis-trans isomers of β-carotene in fresh vegetables and fruits was studied using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with a photodiode array detector. All-trans-β-carotene was the predominant β-carotene and accounted for 66-96% of total isomers, depending on the vegetables and fruits. The main cis isomer detected in green-colored vegetables and fruits, such as spinach, broccoli, garland chrysanthemum, asparagus and kiwifruit is 9-cis-β-carotene. In contrast, 13-cis-β-carotene is found mainly in yellow and red colored vegetables and fruits, such as loquat, sweet potato, squash, tomato and watermelon.