Lutein is a xanthophyll pigment found in photosynthetic organisms. For a long time, its benefits for human health (brain & eye-focused, and systemic) have been hypothesized owing to its antioxidant power and ability to cross the blood-brain barrier. It was only a few years ago that observational studies confirmed these hypotheses. However, only a few interventional studies tackled the question of the effect of lutein incorporation in the human diet. Indeed, humans are not able to synthesize lutein and need to acquire it through their diet. Sadly, in a Western diet, the lutein daily intake is evaluated at around 1.7 mg, while 6 to 14 mg would be necessary to acquire the full extent of lutein benefits in terms of brain and eye aging repelling. Therefore, adoption of lutein-rich food is the only option. But how? Lutein could come from different sources.

 The first one is green-leaf vegetables, which consumption is unlikely to increase. The second is supplementation by capsules containing lutein extracted from Marigold flowers. Yet, their production is deemed unsustainable and they are accessible to a fraction of the population only. The last one is from microalgae (used as seasoning). Indeed, some species are already validated as food (by EFSA and US FDA) and sold in general stores. Furthermore, their lutein content can reach 10 mg/g. To date, no study has investigated microalgal food as a lutein vector. ALADIN project will address this gap by: -evaluating the cognitive performances of two groups (general elders and obese women - vulnerable group -) in a dose-response approach (3 levels: placebo, 6 and 14 mg) and in a temporal approach (up to 12 months). -demonstrating the industrial feasibility of the production of lutein-rich microalgae, allowing them to become a mainstream product, like baker yeast.

Our consortium will answer the above questions and create new knowledge to advise the general public on the relevance of lutein and microalgae as its food vector.