Extraction and chromatography of carotenoids from pumpkin

Vitamin A deficiency is a health problem in Southeast Asia that can be corrected by feeding orange fruits and vegetables such as mango. Pumpkin is a traditional Korean food that is easy to store and is already believed to have health benefits. We extracted carotenoids from pumpkin by liquid-liquid extraction and by supercritical fluid extraction. We measured carotenoids by reversed-phase chromatography with diode array detection. The major carotenoid in pumpkin (>80%) is β-carotene, with lesser amounts of lutein, lycopene, α-carotene and cis-β-carotene. Pumpkin is a rich source of β-carotene and might be useful for preventing Vitamin A deficiency.