Suppressive Effects of Carotenoids on the Antigen-induced Degranulation in RBL-2H3 Rat Basophilic Leukemia Cells

In this study, the anti-degranulation effects of fifteen carotenoids were evaluated using RBL-2113 rat basophilic leukemia cell line as a mast cell model. Nine carotenoids, fucoxanthin, zeaxanthin, beta-carotene, astaxanthin, 3-hydroxyechinenone, fucoxanthinol, lycopene, beta-cryptoxanthin, and siphonaxanthin significantly suppressed antigen-induced mast cell degranulation. Under the same conditions, the cellular carotenoid contents were quantified using high performance liquid chromatography-photodiode array (HPLC-PDA). There was no correlation between the cellular carotenoid contents and their antidegranulation activities. These results indicate that the differences in the anti-degranulation activities of carotenoids were not related to their uptake by the cells.