Chromophores & Light-Absorbing Compounds
Every aspect of the body evolved to sense and use the sun's light
Within the human body, chromophores and light-absorping compounds are found in various biomolecules that play crucial roles in biological processes.
Here are some of these key chromophores and light-absorbing compounds, that by their very existence, disprove the ‘sunlight bad’ narrative.
1. Hemoglobin: The heme group in hemoglobin contains an iron atom within a porphyrin ring, which absorbs light and gives blood its red color.
2. Melanin: A polymer found in the skin, hair, and eyes that provides coloration and protection against UV radiation.
3. Retinal: A derivative of vitamin A that is a key component of the visual pigments in the retina, crucial for vision.
4. Bilirubin: A breakdown product of hemoglobin that gives a yellow color to bruises and jaundice.
5. Cytochromes: Proteins involved in electron transport and cellular respiration, containing heme groups that absorb light.
6. Flavins: Found in flavoproteins, these are involved in various biochemical processes and have light-absorbing properties.
7. Pterins: Pigments found in various tissues that can absorb light, playing roles in pigmentation and other functions.
8. Porphyrins: These are a group of organic compounds, many of which are precursors to heme. They play roles in oxygen transport and storage.
9. Carotenoids: These are pigments found in the diet (like beta-carotene) and can be converted to vitamin A in the body, contributing to coloration and antioxidant properties.
10. Urobilin: A bile pigment resulting from the breakdown of bilirubin, contributing to the yellow color of urine.
11. Lipofuscin: A pigment that accumulates in aging cells, sometimes referred to as “age pigment,” and is associated with oxidative stress.
12. Tryptophan and its Metabolites: Tryptophan, an amino acid, and its metabolites such as kynurenine and serotonin, have light-absorbing properties.
13. NADH and NADPH: Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (phosphate), involved in cellular metabolism, has light-absorbing properties due to its role in redox reactions.
14. FAD (Flavin Adenine Dinucleotide): Another coenzyme involved in redox reactions, which absorbs light.
15. Riboflavin (Vitamin B2): A vitamin that acts as a precursor to coenzymes like FAD and FMN, and has light-absorbing properties.
16. Protoporphyrin IX: An intermediate in heme synthesis that fluoresces under certain conditions.
17. Coenzyme Q10 (Ubiquinone): An important component of the electron transport chain, it absorbs light due to its quinone structure.
18. All-trans Retinoic Acid: A metabolite of vitamin A involved in cell growth and differentiation, which has light-absorbing properties.
19. Catecholamines (Dopamine, Epinephrine, Norepinephrine, etc): Neurotransmitters with aromatic benzene ring structures that absorb light.
20. Cofactors like Biopterin: Involved in the synthesis of neurotransmitters and have chromophoric properties.
21. Bilirubin Derivatives (e.g., Urobilinogen): Other products of bilirubin metabolism that contribute to the color of excretions.
22. Phytoene and Phytofluene: Carotenoid precursors that, though more commonly discussed in plants, can be found in the human body due to diet and have UV-absorbing properties.
23. Polyamines (examples being Spermine and Spermidine): While not primarily chromophores, these compounds can interact with light in complex ways due to their roles in cellular functions.
24. Collagen: The main structural protein in the extracellular space, its cross-linked structure can exhibit autofluorescence.
25. Elastin: Another structural protein in connective tissue that can exhibit autofluorescence under certain conditions.
26. Phospholipids: Components of cell membranes that can exhibit light-absorbing properties when conjugated with other molecules.
27. Neopterin: A marker of immune system activation that fluoresces under UV light
28. Histamine: Though primarily known for its role in immune response, it has a light-absorbing imidazole ring.
29. Biliverdin: A green bile pigment, which is a direct precursor to bilirubin.
30. Fluorophores in Glycation End Products: Advanced glycation end products (AGEs) that accumulate in tissues over time can exhibit fluorescence.
31. Vitamin D Metabolites: Such as 25-hydroxyvitamin D and 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D, which are involved in calcium regulation and can absorb light.
32. Lipid Peroxidation Products: Such as malondialdehyde, which can form chromophoric adducts with proteins and nucleic acids.
33. Anthranilic Acid: A metabolite of tryptophan that has light-absorbing properties.
34. Folic Acid: A B vitamin with a pteridine ring structure that absorbs light.
35. Steroid Hormones: Such as cortisol and testosterone, which have conjugated ring structures capable of absorbing light.
36. Cholesterol Derivatives: Such as oxysterols, which can form chromophores under certain conditions.
37. Vitamin K Derivatives: Involved in blood clotting and have light-absorbing properties.
38. Nucleic Acids: DNA and RNA, which absorb UV light due to their nucleotide bases.
39. Glycogen-related Compounds: Glycogen and its metabolites can have light-interacting properties in certain contexts.
40. Sulfhemoglobin: A variant of hemoglobin containing sulfur, which gives blood a greenish color when present.
41. Methemoglobin: An oxidized form of hemoglobin that absorbs light differently and gives blood a brownish color.
42. Myoglobin: A heme-containing protein in muscle tissue that stores oxygen and absorbs light.
43. Phylloquinone (Vitamin K1): A form of vitamin K involved in blood clotting, with light-absorbing properties.
44. Thyroid Hormones (e.g., Thyroxine, Triiodothyronine): These hormones, derived from tyrosine, have light-absorbing properties.
45. Folate Metabolites: Such as tetrahydrofolate, involved in one-carbon metabolism and absorbing light.
46. Histidine and its Metabolites: An amino acid with a light-absorbing imidazole ring.
47. Methionine and its Sulfoxides: An amino acid that, when oxidized, can form light-absorbing compounds.
48. Cysteine and Cystine: Amino acids containing sulfur, which can form disulfide bonds and absorb light.
49. Peptide Bonds: The bonds between amino acids in proteins, which can absorb light in the UV range.
50. Conjugated Linoleic Acid: A type of fatty acid that can absorb light due to its conjugated double bonds.
51. Phosphocreatine: A molecule involved in energy storage in muscle cells that can absorb light.
52. Pyridoxal Phosphate (Vitamin B6): A coenzyme involved in amino acid metabolism with light-absorbing properties.
53. Biotin: A vitamin involved in carboxylation reactions that has light-absorbing properties.
54. Hydroxylated Estrogens: Metabolites of estrogen that can absorb light due to their aromatic structure.
55. Insulin and other Peptide Hormones: Though not chromophores themselves, they can be labeled with chromophores for research purposes.
56. Nitric Oxide Synthase Cofactors: Such as tetrahydrobiopterin (BH4), which absorb light.
57. Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) Indicators: Compounds that change color or fluorescence in the presence of ROS.
58. Superoxide Dismutase (SOD) Products: Involved in the detoxification of superoxide radicals, with light-absorbing properties.
59. Catalase: An enzyme that catalyzes the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide, with light-absorbing heme groups.
60. Peroxiredoxins: Enzymes that reduce peroxides and have light-absorbing properties when oxidized.
61. Thioredoxin: A protein involved in redox reactions, with light-absorbing properties when interacting with NADPH.
62. Pyruvate: An end product of glycolysis that can absorb light under certain conditions.
63. Acetyl-CoA: A central molecule in metabolism that absorbs light when combined with certain cofactors.
64. Iron-sulfur Clusters: Found in various enzymes involved in electron transfer, absorbing light due to their metal content.
65. Copper-containing Enzymes: Such as ceruloplasmin and cytochrome c oxidase, which absorb light due to their metal cofactors.
66. Selenium-containing Enzymes: Such as glutathione peroxidase, with light-absorbing properties.
67. Zinc Finger Proteins: Involved in DNA binding, with light-absorbing properties when interacting with nucleic acids.
68. Leptin: A hormone involved in appetite regulation, detectable by light-based assays.
69. Ghrelin: A hormone that stimulates appetite, with light-absorbing properties when tagged for detection.
70. Tumor Necrosis Factor (TNF): A cytokine involved in inflammation, detectable using light-based methods.
71. Glycosylated Hemoglobin (HbA1c): Hemoglobin that has glucose attached, used as a marker for long-term blood sugar levels.
72. Ferritin: An iron-storage protein that absorbs light due to its iron content.
73. Transferrin: A blood plasma protein that binds and transports iron, with light-absorbing properties.
74. P450 Enzymes: A family of enzymes involved in drug metabolism, with heme-containing structures that absorb light.
75. Lastly, we have our beloved opsin family which are light sensing proteins that are attached to chromophores and tightly linked with retinal (a derivative of Vitamin A)
What’s crazy is that there are a lot more I can add to this list.
And you want me to believe that circadian biology and light environment isn’t the most important aspect of health?
Come on now.
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Thank you Zaid, quite impressive!
I had a pale-skinned 104 year old grandmother and her daughter, my 97 year old aunt, who didn't get a great deal of sun exposure. They hid from it, based upon flawed advice from their MDs (Medieval Doctors). That lack didn't lead to their early demise. They likely did get good sleep most of their lives, at least until later in life when pain from chronic conditions likely impaired it.
Quantum theory states that matter is merely a state of energy. At the quantum level, we are just masses of whirring electrons, and when those electrons get thrown out of whack, disease can occur. Sunlight and grounding are simple ways to allow the body to naturally get back in balance. So, too, can the food that we eat and the water that we drink, except that they can also contain contaminants that throw electrons out of balance. It's the lack of such an understanding that is why allopathic medicine fails so miserably at treating chronic diseases, which manifest at the quantum level.
I think you have a great message, but it seems hyperbolic at times. I suspect that is just excessive enthusiasm. Or perhaps there's an occasional non-sequitur where you skip a key thought before arriving at your conclusion?
I'd say that humans are designed to be very adaptable, and capable of thriving in a lot of environments, some of which are lacking in sunlight, but some people can thrive all the same. I'm thinking mainly of the Inuits here, and their traditional diet during the winter has sources of "second hand sunlight" stored in the fats of the animals that they consumed. Someone from the tropics moving to such an environment likely wouldn't fare as well.
Perhaps direct exposure to sunlight is more beneficial to those whose ancestors evolved with high level of exposure to sunlight, and less important for those whose ancestors evolved with far lower exposure? There's definitely a ton of truth in what you write, but I don't think it is THE Truth. But great job all the same, because you are expanding people's awareness of health promoting factors!
By the way, years ago I was competitive in the cycling specialty of hill climbing. I had subscribed to a service that summarized the latest research in diet and exercise. One study looked at Masters athletes and how their performance declined with age. The decline was steady until around age 85, when performance decline greatly accelerated. The conclusion from the authors was that this was caused by decreased enervation caused by deterioration of the central nervous system, and that it was inevitable. I tend to agree, except that exceptionally fit people may find it hard not to exercise to the point where they exacerbate and accelerate the damage. My personal, unscientific belief is that for people who don't stress their bodies to the same degree, around age 90 is where the decline is inevitable. I had an uncle who died at age 96, who at age 90 was in better shape than a lot of 20-year-old gymnasts. It was clear in talking with him that around age 90 he was starting to lose his spark.
Optimizing circadian rhythms probably won't help most people live all that much longer. But hopefully it will increase the number of years of health and decrease the amount of chronic disease.
We live in a Goldilocks world. There's a huge variation in what is "just right" for each of us.