Our library offers providers with in-depth reviews of ingredients commonly found in supplements. Each review contains information about the ingredient’s clinical applications, formulations, dosing and administration, adverse effects, and pharmacokinetics.
Lycopene
Lycopene is a non-provitamin A carotenoid that is responsible for the red and pink coloration of certain fruits, such as tomatoes, pink grapefruit, watermelon, papaya, and guava. Lycopene derived from tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) sources has been most widely studied and accounts for significant portions of its dietary intake. (23) Lycopene is most commonly recognized as an antioxidant with roles in preventing oxidative stress across a wide variety of conditions. (6)(34)
Main uses
- Anti-oxidant applications
- Cardiometabolic disorders
- Infertility and prostatic disorders
Formulations
| Formulation | Bioavailability | |
|---|---|---|
|
Lactolycopene (e.g., Ateronon ® – contains 6% lycopene as Lyc-o-mato ® within whey protein matrix) (24) |
Equal increase in bioavailability to tomato paste (24) |
|
|
Lyc-o-mato® (e.g., Lycored – contains lycopene (6%), β-carotene (0.15%), phytoene and phytofluene (1%) and vitamin E (2%), phospholipids (15%), and phytosterol (0.6%) in oleoresin oil (22) |
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Equal bioavailability of synthetic lycopene to tomato-based lycopene (Lyc-o-mato®) (2) |
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Redivivo® (10% w/w water soluble beadlet. Composed of synthetic crystalline lycopene (all-trans) (8) |
Doses of 6.5 mg, 15 mg & 30 mg were more bioavailable compared to baseline after 2 months of supplementation (8) |
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Dosing & administration
| Benign prostatic hyperplasia | ||
|---|---|---|
|
General outcomes from A-level evidence |
No data currently available. |
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|
Dosing & administration
|
15 mg (as Lycovit ® synthetic beadlets) per day for 6 months |
|
|
Outcomes |
PSA & no prostate enlargement (26) |
|
|
Class of evidence
|
C |
|
| Cardiovascular disease | ||
|---|---|---|
|
General outcomes from A-level evidence |
No data currently available. |
|
|
Dosing & administration
|
7 mg (as Ateronon ® lactolycopene) per day for 2 months |
|
|
Outcomes |
endothelium- dependent vasodilatation by 53% to level of healthy volunteers suggesting improved endothelial function (10) |
|
|
Class of evidence
|
B |
|
| Exercise-induced asthma | ||
|---|---|---|
|
General outcomes from A-level evidence |
No data currently available. |
|
|
Dosing & administration
|
30 mg (as Lyc-o-mato® oleoresin tomato extract) per day |
|
|
Outcomes |
protection against asthma (18) |
|
|
Class of evidence
|
C |
|
| Hypertension | ||
|---|---|---|
|
General outcomes from A-level evidence |
No data currently available. |
|
|
Dosing & administration
|
15 mg (as Lyc-o-mato® oleoresin tomato extract) per day for 6 weeks |
|
|
Outcomes |
systolic and diastolic BP serum nitrate (22) |
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|
Class of evidence
|
B |
|
| Leukoplakia | ||
|---|---|---|
|
General outcomes from A-level evidence |
No data currently available. |
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|
Dosing & administration
|
4-8 mg (unspecified form) per day for 3 months |
|
|
Outcomes |
improvement clinical & histological signs (28) |
|
|
Class of evidence
|
B |
|
| Male infertility | ||
|---|---|---|
|
General outcomes from A-level evidence |
No data currently available. |
|
|
Dosing & administration
|
20 mg (unknown form) per day for 12 weeks |
|
|
Outcomes |
soluble receptor for advanced glycation end products (sRAGE) in seminal plasma in fertile and infertile subjects (20) |
|
|
Class of evidence
|
C |
|
| Oral submucous fibrosis | ||
|---|---|---|
|
General outcomes from A-level evidence |
No data currently available. |
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Dosing & administration
|
4 mg (as Lyc-o-mato® oleoresin tomato extract) twice per day for 2 months |
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|
Outcomes |
mouth-opening measures (13) |
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|
Class of evidence
|
B |
|
|
Dosing & administration
|
16 mg (unspecified form) per day for 2 months |
|
|
Outcomes |
mouth-opening measures (15) |
|
|
Class of evidence
|
B |
|
| Osteoporosis | ||
|---|---|---|
|
General outcomes from A-level evidence |
No data currently available. |
|
|
Dosing & administration
|
30 mg per (as tomato juice, lycopene-enriched tomato juice, or Lyc-o-mato® oleoresin tomato extract) day for 4 months |
|
|
Outcomes |
total antioxidant capacity lipid peroxidation, protein oxidation & bone resorption marker NTx (16) |
|
|
Class of evidence
|
B |
|
| Oxidative stress | ||
|---|---|---|
|
General outcomes from A-level evidence |
No data currently available. |
|
|
Dosing & administration
|
30 mg (as Redivivo ® synthetic beadlets) per day for 8 weeks
|
|
|
Outcomes |
lymphocyte DNA damage & urinary 8-hydroxy deoxyguanosine (8) |
|
|
Class of evidence
|
B |
|
|
Dosing & administration
|
14.64 mg (as Lyc-o-mato® oleoresin tomato extract) per day for 2 weeks |
|
|
Outcomes |
frequency of undamaged DNA frequency of damaged DNA in healthy & smoking subjects, and IL-4 in smokers (3) |
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|
Class of evidence
|
B |
|
|
Dosing & administration
|
15 mg (unspecified form) per day for 8 weeks |
|
|
Outcomes |
superoxide dismutase activity, endothelial function score, β-carotene & LDL-particle size DNA comet tail length, hs-CRP, & systolic blood pressure (14) |
|
|
Class of evidence
|
B |
|
|
Dosing & administration
|
12 mg (unspecified, synthetic beadlets) per day for 8 weeks |
|
|
Outcomes |
DNA damage (35) |
|
|
Class of evidence
|
C |
|
| Type II diabetes | ||
|---|---|---|
|
General outcomes from A-level evidence |
No data currently available. |
|
|
Dosing & administration
|
10 mg (unspecified form) per day for 2 months |
|
|
Outcomes |
total antioxidant capacity to malondialdehyde (MDA) ratio. Significant negative correlation between serum IgG and lycopene, & direct correlation between serum IgM and lycopene (19) |
|
|
Class of evidence
|
B |
|
Adverse effects
The observed level of safety for lycopene has been described at 75mg per day, though higher concentrations have been ingested without adverse effects. (27) Doses of lycopene as high as 120 mg per day have been ingested without adverse effects in healthy subjects, (9) and have been shown to be safe at this dose after a year of consumption. (7) Rare instances of allergic skin reactions have been reported. (8)
Pharmacokinetics
Absorption
- Approximately 10-30% of lycopene is absorbed after oral intake. (6)
- Absorption occurs via passive diffusion in the intestine and by the scavenger receptor class B type I (SR-BI) cholesterol membrane transporter. (17)(31)
- Uptake is saturable, with less than 6 mg typically absorbed regardless of doses ranging from 10-120mg. (9)
Distribution
- The SR-BI cholesterol membrane transporter is also located in the liver, adrenals, ovaries, placenta, kidneys, prostate, and brain. (33)
- Highest concentrations are distributed to the testes, and then sequentially to the adrenals, liver, prostate, breast, pancreas, skin, colon, ovaries, lungs, stomach, kidney, adipose tissues, and cervix, thereafter. (6)