Epimerisation of lutein to 3′-epilutein in processed foods

Lutein can convert to 3′-epilutein and anhydrolutein I in acidic medium as well as during different cooking methods. To our knowledge, this is the first demonstration of the epimerisation and dehydration of lutein in native samples. During different cooking processes the lutein content of the processed vegetables and fruits dramatically decreases, thus the bioavailability of processed plant food may also decrease. The occurrence of 3′-epilutein in processed food may be important regarding the application of synthetic lutein as food additive.