Improvement of Lycopene Extraction with Partially Purified Enzymes

Lycopene is the carotenoid which gives tomatoes and other red fruits their characteristic colour. It is one of the most powerful antioxidants and singlet oxygen-quenching agents. Lycopene has been found to be of great medical importance, having various anticancer effects and it is able to ameliorate several other medical conditions. Lycopene had also been found to be very useful in the food industry where it is used as food additives, colourant and functional food. Lycopene, has been the focus of considerable attention for its potential health benefits (Shi et al. 2002; Rao and Rao, 2004). Results from epidemiological and experimental studies support the view that lycopene may provide protection against cardiovascular disease and certain types of cancer (Giovannucci, 2005; Omoni and Aluko, 2005). Lavecchia and Zuorro (2011) reported the growing demand for natural lycopene and therefore considerable interest has been directed to the possibility of obtaining lycopene from tomato processing waste. This growing demand for natural lycopene has led us to device an alternative means for the extraction of lycopene using enzymes.