Myxoxanthophyll

Myxoxanthophyll is a carotenoid glycoside pigment present (usually as rhamnosides) in the photosynthetic apparatus of cyanobacteria, a type of blue-green algae. It is named after the word "Myxophyceae", a former term for cyanobacteria. As a monocyclic xanthophyll, it has a yellowish color. It is required for normal cell wall structure and thylakoid organization in the cyanobacterium Synechocystis. The pigment is unusual because it is glycosylated on the 2'-OH rather than the 1'-OH position of the molecule. Myxoxanthophyll was first isolated from Oscillatoria rubenscens in 1936.