Isolation of Three Stereoisomers, Tunaxanthin A, Tunaxanthin B and Tunaxanthin C from Tunaxanthin Fraction in the Integuments of Fishes

Abstract

Three stereoisomers of ε, ε-carotene-3, 3ε-diol were isolated from tunaxanthin fraction, which has hitherto been identified as a single carotenoid.
Tunaxanthin fraction from the integuments of 27 species of fishes was a mixture of three stereoisomeric tunaxanthins, namely tunaxanthin A, tunaxanthin B and tunaxanthin C.
In correlation with the experimental results of Californian fishes by B_INGHAM et al., it has been deduced that tunaxanthin B is identical to oxyxanthin-51 and that tunaxanthin A and tunaxanthin C will be identical to anyone of the three stereoisomers, oxyxanthin-45, oxyxanthin-58 and chiriquixanthin B respectively although no direct comparison has yet been made.