Synthetic astaxanthin and natural astaxanthin are different, their antioxidant capacity and the content and purity of astaxanthin are different, and they are different in structure. Therefore, there are also differences in the efficacy and function.
Synthetic :
Astaxanthin can be chemically prepared from carotene. This is the main source of astaxanthin in fish feed. The two methods of adding shrimp waste extraction or astaxanthin-producing yeast extraction are more expensive, which is why the chemical synthesis method is more commonly used.
In addition to artificial chemical synthesis methods, there are generally three biological sources of natural astaxanthin: waste from the aquatic product processing industry, Phaffia rhodozyma and microalgae (Haematococcus pluvialis). Among them, the astaxanthin content in the waste is low, and the extraction cost is high, which is not suitable for large-scale production. The average content of astaxanthin in natural Phaffia rhodozyma is only 0.40%. In contrast, the content of astaxanthin in Haematococcus pluvialis is as high as 5%, so it is regarded as a "concentrate" of natural astaxanthin.
What is the difference between artificial astaxanthin and natural astaxanthin?
At present, the production of astaxanthin has two methods: artificial synthesis and biological acquisition. Synthetic astaxanthin is not only expensive, but also has significant differences with natural astaxanthin in terms of structure, function, application and safety.
In terms of structure:
Due to the optical rotation of the hydroxyl (-oh) at both ends, astaxanthin has 3 isomers: 3s-3's, 3r-3's, and 3r-3'r (also called levorotatory, racemic, dextrorotatory) type, synthetic astaxanthin is a mixture of 3 structures of astaxanthin (25% for levorotatory, 25% for dextrorotation, and about 50% for racemization), of little antioxidant activity, yeast-derived astaxanthin is 100% dextrorotatory (3r-3'r) and has partial antioxidant activity; the above two sources of astaxanthin are mainly used for the coloring of non-food animals like pet fish. Only astaxanthin derived from algae, Haematococcus Pluvialis , has a 100% levorotatory (3s-3's) structure and has the strongest biological activity.
Physiological functions:
The stability and antioxidant activity of synthetic astaxanthin are also lower than that of natural astaxanthin. Since the hydroxyl groups (-oh) at both ends of the astaxanthin molecule can be esterified, its stability is different. More than 90% of natural astaxanthin exists in esterified form, so it is relatively stable. Synthetic astaxanthin exists in a free state, so it is stable Not the same, synthetic astaxanthin must be embedded in order to be stable. The synthetic astaxanthin has only about 1/4 of the left-handed structure, that means only a quater as antioxidant.
In terms of application effects:
The bioabsorption of synthetic astaxanthin is also worse than that of natural astaxanthin. feeding at low concentration , the concentration of synthetic astaxanthin in rainbow trout blood is significantly lower than natural astaxanthin, and it cannot be transformed into a natural configuration in the body neither , Its coloring ability and biological potency are much lower than natural astaxanthin of the same concentration.
In terms of biosafety:
During synthetic astaxanthin process, will inevitably introduce impurity chemicals such as unnatural by-products produced, which will reduce its bioavailability safety. With the rise of natural astaxanthin, the management on sythetic astaxanthin in countries around the world has become increasingly stringent. For example, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has banned chemically synthesized astaxanthin from entering food and dietary supplements ( Supplements) market, and natural astaxanthin has obtained General Safety Certification (GRAS) from the FDA, which can legally enter the food and dietary supplement market. The production of astaxanthin generally tends to develop a biological source of natural astaxanthin, and thus carry out large-scale production.
