Vitamini E ndi wopanda fungo komanso wopanda kukoma mafuta achikasu mafuta sungunuka vitamini ndi antioxidant, anticancer, odana ndi yotupa ndi ntchito zina. Malinga ndi kapangidwe kake ka maselo, amatha kugawidwa m'magulu awiri: tocopherols ndi tocotrienols. Gulu lililonse limagawidwa m'mitundu inayi kutengera malo a methyl pa mphete ya chromophore: alpha, beta, gamma, ndi delta [1-2]. Mankhwala okhudzana ndi tocopherols, monga tocotrienols, amakhala ndi ntchito inayake pamene olowa m'malo ndi osiyana, koma ntchito ya tocopherols imachepetsedwa kwambiri.

Tocopherol ndi tocotrienol ali ndi mphamvu zowononga antioxidant. Chifukwa cha ntchito ya alpha tocopherol transfer protein (alpha TP) ndi tocopherol binding protein (TBP) m'thupi, tocopherol imatengedwa mosavuta ndikugwiritsidwa ntchito ndi thupi. Chifukwa chake, alpha tocopherol imawonedwa ngati chiwonetsero chachikulu cha antioxidant ntchito ya vitamini E m'thupi. Alpha tocopherol, yokhala ndi mamolekyu a C29H50O2 ndi kulemera kwa maselo a 430.5, amagawidwa m'mitundu iwiri kutengera gwero lake: zachilengedwe ndi zopangidwa, zomwe zimatchedwa D-mtundu ndi L-mtundu, motero. Natural alpha tocopherol ali mu R conformation (RRR), pamene artificially synthesized alpha tocopherol ali mu RS conformation (RRR, RSR, RRS, RSS, SRR, SSR, SRS, SSS). Conformation ikugwirizana ndi ntchito yake, ndipo kafukufuku wapeza kuti alpha tocopherol yokhala ndi 2R kapena kuposerapo ingagwiritsidwe ntchito ndikuyamwa ndi thupi. Chifukwa chake, alpha tocopherol yachilengedwe imakhala ndi zakudya zambiri komanso ndiyotetezeka kuposa alpha tocopherol yopangidwa mwachilengedwe.