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Fucoxanthin is a carotenoid, with formula C40H60O6. It is found as an accessory pigment in the chloroplasts of brown algae and most other heterokonts, giving them a brown or olive-green color. Fucoxanthin absorbs light primarily in the blue-green to yellow-green part of the visible spectrum, peaking at around 510-525 nm by various estimates and absorbing significantly in the range of 450 to 540 nm. Some metabolic and nutritional studies carried at Hokkaido University have demonstrated that brown seaweed (rich in fucoxanthin) promotes fat burning within fat cells surrounding internal organs. In addition, fucoxanthin has strong anti-diabetes effects and, by a separate biological mechanism, it appears to kill prostate cancer cells in culture.
