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Pigment, Biology
Biological pigments, also known simply as pigments or biochromes, are substances produced by living organisms that have a color resulting from selective color absorption. Biological pigments include plant pigments and flower pigments. Many biological structures, such as skin, eyes, feathers, fur and hair contain pigments such as melanin in specialized cells called chromatophores. In some species, pigments accrue over very long periods during an individual's lifespan. Pigment color differs from structural color in that it is the same for all viewing angles, whereas structural color is the result of selective reflection or iridescence, usually because of multilayer structures. For example, butterfly wings typically contain structural color, although many butterflies have cells that contain pigment as well. Biological pigments See conjugated systems for electron bond chemistry that causes these molecules to have pigment. * Heme/porphyrin-based: chlorophyll, bilirubin, hemocya ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Melopsittacus Undulatus
The budgerigar ( ; ''Melopsittacus undulatus''), also known as the common parakeet or shell parakeet, is a small, long-tailed, seed-eating parrot usually nicknamed the budgie ( ), or in American English, the parakeet. Budgies are the only species in the genus ''Melopsittacus''. Naturally, the species is green and yellow with black, scalloped markings on the nape, back, and wings. Budgies are bred in captivity with colouring of blues, whites, yellows, greys, and even with small crests. Juveniles and chicks are monomorphic, while adults are told apart by their cere colouring, and their behaviour. The species is the only member of the genus ''Melopsittacus'', which is the only genus in the Melopsittacini tribe. The origin of the budgerigar's name is unclear. First recorded in 1805, budgerigars are popular pets around the world due to their small size, low cost, and ability to mimic human speech. They are likely the third most popular pet in the world, after the domesticated d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hemocyanin
Hemocyanins (also spelled haemocyanins and abbreviated Hc) are proteins that transport oxygen throughout the bodies of some invertebrate animals. These metalloproteins contain two copper atoms that reversibly bind a single oxygen molecule (O2). They are second only to hemoglobin in frequency of use as an oxygen transport molecule. Unlike the hemoglobin in red blood cells found in vertebrates, hemocyanins are not confined in blood cells but are instead suspended directly in the hemolymph. Oxygenation causes a color change between the colorless Cu(I) deoxygenated form and the blue Cu(II) oxygenated form. Species distribution Hemocyanin was first discovered in ''Octopus vulgaris'' by Leon Fredericq in 1878. The presence of copper in molluscs was detected even earlier by Bartolomeo Bizio in 1833. Hemocyanins are found in the Mollusca and Arthropoda including cephalopods and crustaceans and utilized by some land arthropods such as the tarantula ''Eurypelma californicum'', the em ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lutein
Lutein (;"Lutein" . from ''luteus'' meaning "yellow") is a and one of 600 known naturally occurring carotenoids. Lutein is synthesized only by plants, and like other xanthophylls is found in high quantities in [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zeaxanthin
Zeaxanthin is one of the most common carotenoids in nature, and is used in the xanthophyll cycle. Synthesized in plants and some micro-organisms, it is the pigment that gives paprika (made from bell peppers), corn, saffron, goji ( wolfberries), and many other plants and microbes their characteristic color. The name (pronounced ''zee-uh-zan'-thin'') is derived from ''Zea mays'' (common yellow maize corn, in which zeaxanthin provides the primary yellow pigment), plus ''xanthos'', the Greek word for "yellow" (see xanthophyll). Xanthophylls such as zeaxanthin are found in highest quantity in the leaves of most green plants, where they act to modulate light energy and perhaps serve as a non-photochemical quenching agent to deal with triplet chlorophyll (an excited form of chlorophyll) which is overproduced at high light levels during photosynthesis. Animals derive zeaxanthin from a plant diet. Zeaxanthin is one of the two primary xanthophyll carotenoids contained within the retina ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Canthaxanthin
Canthaxanthin is a keto-carotenoid pigment widely distributed in nature. Carotenoids belong to a larger class of phytochemicals known as terpenoids. The chemical formula of canthaxanthin is C40H52O2. It was first isolated in edible mushrooms. It has also been found in green algae, bacteria, crustaceans, and bioaccumulates in fish such as carp, golden grey mullet, seabream and trush wrasse. Canthaxanthin is associated with E number E161g and is approved for use as a food coloring agent in different countries, including the United States and the EU; however, it is not approved for use in Australia and New Zealand. It is generally authorized for feed applications in at least the following countries: US, Canada, EU. In the EU, canthaxanthin is allowed by law to be added to trout feed, salmon feed and poultry feed. The European Union limit is 80 mg/kg of feedstuffs, 8 mg/kg in feed for egg laying hens and 25 mg/kg in feed for other poultry and salmonids. Canthaxan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Xanthophyll
Xanthophylls (originally phylloxanthins) are yellow pigments that occur widely in nature and form one of two major divisions of the carotenoid group; the other division is formed by the carotenes. The name is from Greek (, "yellow") and (, "leaf"), due to their formation of the yellow band seen in early chromatography of leaf pigments. Molecular structure As both are carotenoids, xanthophylls and carotenes are similar in structure, but xanthophylls contain oxygen atoms while carotenes are ''purely hydrocarbons'', which do not contain oxygen. Their content of oxygen causes xanthophylls to be more polar (in molecular structure) than carotenes, and causes their separation from carotenes in many types of chromatography. (Carotenes are usually more orange in color than xanthophylls.) Xanthophylls present their oxygen either as hydroxyl groups and/or as hydrogen atoms substituted by oxygen atoms when acting as a bridge to form epoxides. Occurrence Like other carotenoids, xanth ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rhodopsin
Rhodopsin, also known as visual purple, is a protein encoded by the RHO gene and a G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR). It is the opsin of the rod cells in the retina and a light-sensitive receptor protein that triggers visual phototransduction in rods. Rhodopsin mediates dim light vision and thus is extremely sensitive to light. When rhodopsin is exposed to light, it immediately photobleaches. In humans, it is regenerated fully in about 30 minutes, after which the rods are more sensitive. Defects in the rhodopsin gene cause eye diseases such as retinitis pigmentosa and congenital stationary night blindness. Names Rhodopsin was discovered by Franz Christian Boll in 1876. The name rhodospsin derives from Ancient Greek () for "rose", due to its pinkish color, and () for "sight". It was coined in 1878 by the German physiologist Wilhelm Friedrich Kühne (1837-1900). When George Wald discovered that rhodopsin is a holoprotein, consisting of retinal and an apoprotein, he c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lycopene
Lycopene is an organic compound classified as a tetraterpene and a carotene. Lycopene (from the neo-Latin ''Lycopersicum'', the tomato species) is a bright red carotenoid hydrocarbon found in tomatoes and other red fruits and vegetables. Occurrence Aside from tomatoes, it is found in red carrots, watermelons, grapefruits, and papayas. It is not present in strawberries or cherries. It has no vitamin A activity. In plants, algae, and other photosynthetic organisms, lycopene is an intermediate in the biosynthesis of many carotenoids, including beta-carotene, which is responsible for yellow, orange, or red pigmentation, photosynthesis, and photoprotection. Like all carotenoids, lycopene is a tetraterpene. It is insoluble in water. Eleven conjugated double bonds give lycopene its deep red color. Owing to the strong color, lycopene is useful as a food coloring (registered as E160d) and is approved for use in the US, Australia and New Zealand (registered as 160d) and the European ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carotene
The term carotene (also carotin, from the Latin ''carota'', "carrot") is used for many related unsaturated hydrocarbon substances having the formula C40Hx, which are synthesized by plants but in general cannot be made by animals (with the exception of some aphids and spider mites which acquired the synthesizing genes from fungi). Carotenes are photosynthetic pigments important for photosynthesis. Carotenes contain no oxygen atoms. They absorb ultraviolet, violet, and blue light and scatter orange or red light, and (in low concentrations) yellow light. Carotenes are responsible for the orange colour of the carrot, after which this class of chemicals is named, and for the colours of many other fruits, vegetables and fungi (for example, sweet potatoes, chanterelle and orange cantaloupe melon). Carotenes are also responsible for the orange (but not all of the yellow) colours in dry foliage. They also (in lower concentrations) impart the yellow coloration to milk-fat and butter. O ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carotene
The term carotene (also carotin, from the Latin ''carota'', "carrot") is used for many related unsaturated hydrocarbon substances having the formula C40Hx, which are synthesized by plants but in general cannot be made by animals (with the exception of some aphids and spider mites which acquired the synthesizing genes from fungi). Carotenes are photosynthetic pigments important for photosynthesis. Carotenes contain no oxygen atoms. They absorb ultraviolet, violet, and blue light and scatter orange or red light, and (in low concentrations) yellow light. Carotenes are responsible for the orange colour of the carrot, after which this class of chemicals is named, and for the colours of many other fruits, vegetables and fungi (for example, sweet potatoes, chanterelle and orange cantaloupe melon). Carotenes are also responsible for the orange (but not all of the yellow) colours in dry foliage. They also (in lower concentrations) impart the yellow coloration to milk-fat and butter. O ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hematochrome
Hematochrome is a yellow, orange, or (most commonly) red biological pigment present in some green algae The green algae (singular: green alga) are a group consisting of the Prasinodermophyta and its unnamed sister which contains the Chlorophyta and Charophyta/Streptophyta. The land plants (Embryophytes) have emerged deep in the Charophyte alga as ..., especially when exposed to intense light. It is a name used mainly in older literature. Hematochrome is a mixture of carotenoid pigments and their derivates. References Carotenoids {{biochem-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carotenoid
Carotenoids (), also called tetraterpenoids, are yellow, orange, and red organic compound, organic pigments that are produced by plants and algae, as well as several bacteria, and Fungus, fungi. Carotenoids give the characteristic color to pumpkins, carrots, parsnips, maize, corn, tomatoes, Domestic Canary, canaries, flamingos, salmon, lobster, shrimp, and daffodils. Carotenoids can be produced from Lipid, fats and other basic organic metabolic building blocks by all these organisms. It is also produced by Endosymbiont, endosymbiotic bacteria in Whitefly, whiteflies. Carotenoids from the diet are stored in the fatty tissues of animals, and exclusively Carnivore, carnivorous animals obtain the compounds from animal fat. In the human diet, Small intestine#Absorption, absorption of carotenoids is improved when consumed with fat in a meal. Cooking carotenoid-containing vegetables in oil and shredding the vegetable both increase carotenoid bioavailability. There are over 1,100 known c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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