I think this is an interesting question. Another thought; since carotenoid pigments are synthesized and stored in chromoplasts (derived from chloroplasts), and chloroplasts are largely absent in the epidermis - it seems unlikely that lycopene, or any other carotenoid pigment, will be accumulated in the epidermis. Although pigmentation of the sub-epidermis seems not to be well understood, it seems this is the more likely source of the "red skin" phenomenon.
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