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Content with tag macular degeneration .

Tropical bat as mammalian model for skin carotenoid metabolism

Animals cannot synthesize carotenoid pigments de novo, and must consume them in their diet. Most mammals, including humans, are indiscriminate accumulators of carotenoids but inefficiently distribute them to some tissues and organs. To date, no mammal has been known to have evolved physiological mechanisms to incorporate and deposit carotenoids in the skin or hair. Here it is shown that the Honduran white bat colors its skin bright yellow with the deposition of the xanthophyll lutein.