i86 CAROTENOIDS CONTAINING HYDROXYL GROUPS XI 



Zeaxanthin dipropionate C46H54O4*' : Crystallises from a mixture of benzene and 

 methanol. M.p. 142°. 



Zeaxanthin dihutyrate C48H6804^^. Crystallises from a mixture of benzene and 

 methanol. M.p. 132°. 



Zeaxanthin di-n-valerate C5oH7204^' : Crystallises from a mixture of benzene and 

 methanol. M.p. 125°. 



Zeaxanthin di-n-capronate C52H7804*^: M.p. 117-118°. 



Zeaxanthin di-n-caprylate C56H84O4*' : This compound crystallises from benzene. 

 M.p. 107°. 



Zeaxanthin dilaurate C54Hio„04*^. M.p. 104°. 



Zeaxanthin monopalmitate CsgHggOg: This compound was obtained by Karrer 

 and ScHLiENTZ*' by partial saponification of physalien. The half-ester crystallises 

 from a mixture of benzene and ethanol in plates, m.p. 148°. 



Zeaxanthin distearate C76HJ24O4: Prepared by treating a solution of zeaxanthin 

 in pyridine with stearic acid chloride. M.p. 95°. 



Physalien (zeaxanthin dipalmitate) C^^HhqO^: Kuhn and Wiegand found 

 a caret enoid in Phy salts Alkekengi and Physalis Franchetii^^ which they termed 

 physalien. This pigment was later obtained from numerous other plants. 



TABLE 41 



OCCURRENCE OF PHYSALIEN 



Source References 



Asparagus officinalis A. Winterstein and U. Ehrenberg, Z. physiol. 



Chem. 207 (1932) 26. 

 Hippophae rhamnoides 

 (berries) P. Karrer and H. Wehrli, Helv. chim. Acta 13 (1930) 



1104. 

 Lycium barbarum (skin) 

 and Solanum Hendersonii A. Winterstein and U. Ehrenberg, Z. physiol. 



Chem. 2oy (1932) 26. 

 Lycium halimifolium (skins) L. Zechmeister and L. v. Cholnoky, Ann. 481, 



(1930) 42. 



Investigations by Zechmeister and von Cholnoky^^ and Kuhn and co- 

 workers^^ showed that physalien is an ester of zeaxanthin, namely zeaxanthin 

 dipalmitate. 



CH3 CHo CH3 CH3 



C CHo CHq CHo CHo C 



/\ I I I r /\ 



CHj C-CH=CH-C=CHCH=CH-C=CHCH=CHCH=C-CH=CHCH=C-CH=CH-C CHj 



I II II I 



CisHaiCOO-CH C-CHg HaC-C CH-OCOCisHai 



\ / Physalien \^ / 



References p. 214—217. 



