Validation of a high-performance liquid chromatography with diode-array detection method for the simultaneous determination of lycopene and phytoene in tomato extracts and comparison with a newly developed “Rubybell” extract

In this study, the lycopene and phytoene contents in commercial tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) extracts and a newly developed ‘Rubybell’ extract were compared using a validated high-performance liquid chromatography with diode-array detection method. Phytoene and lycopene were selected as key targets because ‘Rubybell’ was bred for enhanced functional carotenoids, and phytoene is increasingly valued for its bioavailability and skin-health potential. The method showed excellent linearity (R2>0.999), with limit of detection/limit of quantitation values of 0.0668/0.2024 and 0.0604/0.1830 μg/mL for phytoene and lycopene, respectively. Precision relative standard deviations (RSDs) were within 6.16%, and the recovery ranged from 84.2 to 102.4% with RSDs below 2.8%. PhytoflORALTM showed the highest lycopene content, whereas ‘Rubybell’ had the highest phytoene content. This method is suitable for standardizing tomato-derived functional materials.