Microalgae carotenoids and macular degeneration

At this time, millions of people around the world have some visual impairment related to macular degeneration, mainly due to age. This condition makes simple daily routine tasks complex challenges. A preventive strategy to avoid macular degeneration is the adequate intake of bioactive nutrients such as carotenoids. These chemical structures play a crucial role in protecting eye health against oxidative damage. As the human body does not have a biosynthetic pathway for the production of these biocompounds, they need to be obtained through the consumption of enriched sources. In this sense, the production of these pigments from microalgal biomass is a sustainable and promising strategy to meet the growing global demand for these compounds with ocular effects. These microorganisms are considered exceptional biofactories of carotenoids, especially those of macular importance, such as lutein, zeaxanthin, and astaxanthin. From this perspective, this chapter presents an overview of microalgal carotenoids that act against macular degeneration, including (1) aspects related to global public health risk; (2) production of microalgal carotenoids related to macular protection; and (3) notes on the chemistry and mechanism of macular protection of microalgal carotenoids.