Therapeutic Role of Green Tea Polyphenols in Improving Fertility: A Review

Abstract

Sperm cells are highly sensitive to reactive oxygen species (ROS), which are produced during cellular oxidation. In normal cell biology, ROS levels increase with a decreasing antioxidant response, resulting in oxidative stress which threatens sperm biology. Oxidative stress has numerous effects, including increased apoptosis, reduced motion parameters, and reduced sperm integrity. In this regard, green tea polyphenols (GrTPs) have been reported to possess properties that may increase the quality of male and female gametes, mostly via the capability of catechins to reduce ROS production. GrTPs have antioxidant properties that improve major semen parameters, such as sperm concentration, motility, morphology, DNA damage, fertility rate, and gamete quality. These unique properties of green tea catechins could improve reproductive health and represent an important study area. This exploratory review discusses the therapeutic effects of GrTPs against infertility, their possible mechanisms of action, and recommended supportive therapy for improving fertility in humans and in animals.

The impact of sociodemographic characteristics, lifestyle, work exposure and medical history on semen parameters in young Chinese men: A cross‐sectional study

“…For centuries, tea drinking is a popular Chinese culture. Regular tea consumption has several health benefits and improves fertility in humans and animals (Ding et al, ; Rahman et al, ). We noted an increase in sperm concentration in tea‐consuming population.…”

Nutritional applications and beneficial health applications of green tea and l‐theanine in some animal species: A review

“…l-theanine has been studied as a food additive and functional food in relation to human nutrition, and it has health-promoting, pharmacological and biological properties such as anti-cerebral ischaemiareperfusion injury, stress-reducing, antitumour, anti-ageing and anti-anxiety activities (Culetu, Fernandez-Gomez, Ullate, Maria, & Wilfried, 2016;. Green tea polyphenols (GTPs) increase the quality of male and female gametes mainly due to catechins which reduce the level of reactive oxygen species (ROS) both in humans and animals thereby improving fertility (Rahman et al, 2018). This article describes the useful applications and practical utility of green tea and l-theanine as feed supplement to improve production performances and provide potential health applications in livestock animals including poultry, fish and others.…”

Influence of paternal consumption of a high-fat/high-sugar diet and/or orange juice during preconception on C57BL/6 female mice offspring breast cancer risk

“…Polyphenols have also been shown to influence fertility and sexual development; fetal health and the bioavailability of nutrients (LY, et al 2015). Some classes of polyphenols such as green tea catechins have been shown to have antioxidant properties, which improved fertility parameters, such as sperm concentration, motility, morphology, DNA damage, fertility rate, and gamete quality (RAHMAN et al, 2018). Also, cyanidin-3-O-glucoside at low doses improved the number and motility of the sperms, alleviating the seminiferous tubule injury caused by 3-chloro-1,2-propanediol (3-MCPD) (JIANG et al, 2018).…”

“…Also, what mechanisms explain why orange juice presented protective metabolic effects in female offspring, but did not prevent breast cancer. Furthermore, the potential benefits of paternal consumption of polyphenols should be further investigated, as it has been shown that some classes of these bioactive compounds have positive effects on male reproductive parameters (JIANG et al, 2018;RAHMAN et al, 2018). Understanding orange juice and polyphenols consumption by fathers in their specific metabolic context (i.e.…”

“…Currently, there are reports showing a positive effect of some classes of bioactive compounds on male reproductive parameters (JIANG et al, 2018;RAHMAN et al, 2018). Overall, there are few studies that have investigated paternal eating behavior and offspring health and only one study was found on research database regarding paternal preconception consumption of foods containing bioactive compounds and its protective effects in offspring health (MCPHERSON et al, 2016).…”