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Review
. 2017 Apr 20;22(4):610.
doi: 10.3390/molecules22040610.

The Pharmacological Effects of Lutein and Zeaxanthin on Visual Disorders and Cognition Diseases

Yu-Ping Jia  1 , Lei Sun  2 , He-Shui Yu  3 , Li-Peng Liang  4 , Wei Li  5 , Hui Ding  6 , Xin-Bo Song  7   8 , Li-Juan Zhang  9
Affiliations
Review

The Pharmacological Effects of Lutein and Zeaxanthin on Visual Disorders and Cognition Diseases

Yu-Ping Jia et al. Molecules. .

Abstract

Lutein (L) and zeaxanthin (Z) are dietary carotenoids derived from dark green leafy vegetables, orange and yellow fruits that form the macular pigment of the human eyes. It was hypothesized that they protect against visual disorders and cognition diseases, such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD), age-related cataract (ARC), cognition diseases, ischemic/hypoxia induced retinopathy, light damage of the retina, retinitis pigmentosa, retinal detachment, uveitis and diabetic retinopathy. The mechanism by which they are involved in the prevention of eye diseases may be due their physical blue light filtration properties and local antioxidant activity. In addition to their protective roles against light-induced oxidative damage, there are increasing evidences that L and Z may also improve normal ocular function by enhancing contrast sensitivity and by reducing glare disability. Surveys about L and Z supplementation have indicated that moderate intakes of L and Z are associated with decreased AMD risk and less visual impairment. Furthermore, this review discusses the appropriate consumption quantities, the consumption safety of L, side effects and future research directions.

Keywords: ADI; AMD; ARC; carotenoids; cataract; cognition; lutein; zeaxanthin.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors report no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The structures of L, Z and their stereoisomers.
Figure 1
Figure 1
The structures of L, Z and their stereoisomers.
Figure 1
Figure 1
The structures of L, Z and their stereoisomers.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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