Unveiling BCO2 function in macular pigment metabolism: Mitochondrial processing and expression in the primate retina.

BCO2 (β-carotene oxygenase 2) converts carotenoids into apocarotenoids by oxidative cleavage across double bonds and controls carotenoid homeostasis in vertebrate tissues. In this study, we examined BCO2's expression, localization, and activity in human cell lines and the retina. We generated peptide antibodies directed against primate BCO2 and validated their specificity using recombinant BCO1 (β-carotene oxygenase 1) and BCO2 proteins expressed in bacteria.