Lycopene accumulation induced by 2-(4-chlorophenylthio)-triethylamine hydrochloride.

After fruits, roots, or the mycelium of certain plants were treated with 2-(4-chlorophenylthio)-triethylamine hydrochloride, lycopene was detected in the tissue. This is the first known success in causing lycopene to accumulate in a wide range of carotenogenic tissues that normally do not accumulate the pigment at some stage of development. The response should be of value in the study of carotenoid biosynthetic pathways and gene control mechanisms.