Screening and purification of catechins from underutilized tea plant parts and their bioactivity studies

Abstract

Comparative investigation of major phytoconstituents was performed from various parts of tea plant viz. apical bud, subtending 1st-5th leaf, stem, coarse leaves, flowers, fruits and roots. From the results of comparative RP-HPLC-DAD analysis it was found that underutilized tea parts especially coarse leaves, flowers and fruits contains abundant amount of phenolics (17.5%) and catechins (4-5%). From these underutilized tea plant parts the catechins were extracted and purified and then screened for their anticancer, immunomodulatory effect and antimicrobial activity against food borne pathogens. The results showed that tea fruit extract exhibited higher toxicity against oral cancer cells and also promotes proliferation of mice splenocytes. The results of antimicrobial studies revealed the inhibitory effect of these extracts against both gram positive and gram negative bacteria. These investigations clearly demonstrated that the underutilized tea plant parts could act as economical and sustainable bioresource of functionally active constituents which further lead to the development of new cost-effective nutraceuticals and other formulations.

A Review on the Biological Activity of Camellia Species

“…Most of the reported studies were performed with plant leaves; however other plant parts revealed to possess antimicrobial activity. Namely, Rana et al [ 64 ] evaluated the activity of catechins from underutilized tea plant parts (coarse leaves, flowers and fruits) against Gram positive and Gram negative food-borne pathogens ( B. subtilis , S. aureus, E. coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae ). The best result was obtained for tea flower extract (maximum zone of inhibition at 20 mg/mL) against S. aureus and K. pneumonia .…”

“…The antiproliferative activity of the methanolic extract was examined and the results showed a powerful growth inhibition of both cell lines in a concentration-dependent manner (IC 50 = 54 ± 10 for A-498 and 129 ± 28 µg/mL for 769-P cells) It should be noted that, along with the antitumor activity studies, the authors identified the extract phenolic and methylxanthine content allowing a deeper knowledge on the compounds responsible for the reported biological activity. In 2016, Rana et al [ 64 ], evaluated the bioactivity (including the antitumor against oral cancer cells) of frequently neglected tea plant parts as apical buds, stem, coarse leaves, flowers, fruits and roots. The results showed that tea fruit extract exhibited higher toxicity (71.6 to 74.9% at the concentration of 50–200 µg/mL) against oral cancer cells being comparable to the obtained with standard vinblastibe (74.2% at 2 µg/mL concentration).…”

Metabolomics for a Millenniums-Old Crop: Tea Plant (Camellia sinensis)

“…Flavonoids are formed into their derivatives such as flavonoid glycoside through methylation and galactosylation. The majority of polyphenols are located in the leaves of the tea plant; however, some of them distribute to the flower and fruit …”

“…The majority of polyphenols are located in the leaves of the tea plant; however, some of them distribute to the flower and fruit. 72 Metabolism of Theanine. There are 26 amino acids identified in tea, including 20 protein amino acids and six nonprotein amino acids.…”

Rapid screening and quantification of major organic acids in citrus fruits and their bioactivity studies

“…A well diffusion method was used to evaluate the antimicrobial activity of citrus fruit juices, following procedure as discussed in Rana et al (2016). Nutrient broth was used for the growth of bacterial culture.…”