Enhancing Bioavailability and Nutritional Quality of Processed Tomato Products

The primary goal of this research is to determine if a processed Tangerine tomato product has enhanced bioavailability of carotenoids and flavonoids compared to a commercially available processed red tomato product in humans. This primary objective will be accomplished by quantifying carotenoids from post-prandial triglyceride-rich lipoprotein (TRL) fractions of plasma and flavonoids from whole plasma and urine, after subjects consume a meal containing Tangerine or red tomato juice. A secondary goal is to examine if short-term delivery of bioactives from Tangerine and red tomatoes impact markers of inflammation in humans. This secondary objective will be accomplished by analyzing plasma for both interleukin-6 (IL-6), a marker for inflammation, and RNA to assess alterations in transcription of genes that regulate inflammation.