Transforming Tea Catechins into Potent Anticancer Compound: Analysis of Three Boronated-PEG Delivery System

Chemotherapy has led to many undesirable side effects, as these are toxic drugs that are unable to differentiate between cancer and normal cells. Polyphenols (tea catechins) are an ideal option as alternative chemotherapeutics owing to their inherent anticancer properties, antioxidant properties and being naturally occurring compounds, are deemed safe for consumption. However, without proper administration, the bioavailability of these compounds is low and inefficient. Therefore, proper delivery of these phenolic compounds is vital for cancer therapy. Herein, we analyzed three potential solutions to creating nanoparticle drugs using naturally occurring phenolic compounds (piceatannol (PIC), epigallocatechin gallate hydrophilic (EGCG) and l-epicatechin (EPI)). By using a simple pi-pi stacking mechanism, we utilized boronated PEG (PEG-Br) as an anchor to efficiently load EPI, PIC and EGCG, respectively, to produce three effective phenolic compound-based nanoparticles, which could be delivered safely in systemic circulation, yet detach from its cargo intracellularly to exert its anticancer effect for effective cancer therapy.

Improving the Extraction of Catechins of Green Tea (Camellia sinensis) by Subcritical Water Extraction (SWE) Combined with Pulsed Electric Field (PEF) or Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) Pretreatment

The aim of this study was to find the optimum condition of pulsed electric field (PEF) and intense pulsed light (IPL) for the enhancement of subcritical water extraction (SWE), which is an eco-friendly extraction method, for extracting tea catechins from green tea leaves (Camellia sinensis). The leaves were treated with PEF under conditions of electric field strength (1, 2 and 3 kV/cm) during 60 s. Moreover, IPL was applied at various voltages (800, 1000, and 1200 V) for 60 s. The SWE was performed for 5 min at varying temperatures (110, 130, 150, 170, and 190 °C). The maximum yield of total catechin was 44.35 ± 2.00 mg/g dry green tea leaves at PEF treatment conditions of 2 kV/cm during 60 s, as well as the SWE temperature of 130 °C. In the case of IPL treatment, the largest amount of total catechin was 48.06 ± 5.03 mg/g dry green tea leaves at 800 V during 60 s when the extraction temperature was 130 °C. The total catechin content was increased by 15.43% for PEF and 25.09% for IPL compared to the value of untreated leaves. This study verified that PEF and IPL had a positive effect on the enhancement of tea catechins extraction from green tea leaves using SWE.

Anti-infective and Antineoplastic properties of Green Tea Catechins: Examining the Therapeutic Risk-Benefit ratio

Background: Green tea is a commonly used dietary supplement and food product. Green tea contains many polyphenolic compounds known as green tea catechins (GTCs). There are numerous reports exploring the potential benefit of using green tea catechins as chemotherapeutic agents to treat neoplastic disorders and infectious processes. The prevalence of cancer diagnoses, bacterial infections, and viral diseases that include SARS-CoV-2 have led to increased interest in GTCs as a therapeutic option in patients suffering from these conditions. Objective: This concise review explores the evidence related to the therapeutic use of GTCs to treat neoplastic disorders as well as bacterial and viral infections. Methods: PubMed, NIH, OVID online databases were utilized to retrieve relevant scientific literature that address GTCs role in treating cancer and infectious disease. Results: While there are preliminary data indicating potentially adventitious properties of GTCs, there is a paucity of large prospective clinical trial data to support the use of GTCs in a therapeutic capacity to treat these disease processes. There are documented instances of GTCs interacting with medications indicated to treat neoplastic diseases. Conclusions: Currently, it appears the therapeutic benefit of using GTCs is outweighed by the potential risks.

Preventive effects of tea and tea catechins against influenza and acute upper respiratory tract infections: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Purpose Gargling with tea has protective effects against influenza infection and upper respiratory tract infection (URTI). To evaluate if tea and tea catechin consumption has the same protective effects as gargling with tea, we performed a systematic review and meta-analysis. Methods We performed a comprehensive literature search using the PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and Ichu-shi Web databases. The search provided six randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and four prospective cohort studies (n = 3748). The quality of each trial or study was evaluated according to the Cochrane risk-of-bias tool or Newcastle–Ottawa Scale. We collected data from publications meeting the search criteria and conducted a meta-analysis of the effect of tea gargling and tea catechin consumption for preventing URTI using a random effects model. Results Tea gargling and tea catechin consumption had significant preventive effects against URTI (risk ratio [RR] = 0.74, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.64–0.87). In sub-analyses, a significant preventive effect was observed by study type (prospective cohort study: RR = 0.67, 95% CI 0.50–0.91; RCT: RR = 0.79, 95% CI 0.66–0.94) and disease type (influenza: RR = 0.69, 95% CI 0.58–0.84; acute URTI: RR = 0.78, 95% CI 0.62–0.98). Both gargling with tea and consuming tea catechins effectively protected against URTI (tea and tea catechins consumption: RR = 0.68, 95% CI 0.52–0.87; tea gargling: RR = 0.83, 95% CI 0.72–0.96). Conclusion Our findings suggest that tea gargling and tea catechin consumption may have preventive effects against influenza infection and URTI. The potential effectiveness of these actions as non-pharmaceutical interventions, however, requires further investigation.

Green Tea: Conventional Facts and its Frontier Prospect on Health- A review

Green tea obtained from the leaves of Camellia sinensis (L.) Kuntze having potential health benefits. It contains significant amounts of antioxidant and is considered as world healthiest drink. Polyphenols in tea are thought to exhibits anti-carcinogenic and anti-inflammatory effects. Green tea catechins acts as immune modulators in immune dysfunction and also play a role in protection from degenerative diseases. Intake of green tea catechins suppress high fat diet induced obesity, prevent lipid and glucose metabolism disorders and reduce risk of coronary heart disease. Green tea constituent epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) is a potential antioxidant that shows protective effects against photo toxicity and photo carcinogenesis. In vitro animal experiments have suggested that polyphenols in green tea protect from lung cancer by their antioxidant and antimutagenic properties. This study chiefly highlights the convenience of green tea on health and propagates its further prospects.