Screening of Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) Contents in Camellia sinensis Products
Abstract
Epidemiological studies have proven the influences of tea consumption in the prevention of chronic diseases. Tea (Camellia sinensis) is a major source of epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), a compound with pharmacological properties such as anti-obesity, anti-diabetes and anti-inflammation. The aim of this study was to analyze and compare the EGCG content in commercialized tea-based products, infusion tea and ready-to-drink tea beverages available in the local market. This study was divided into two phases. The first phase involved the extraction of EGCG compounds from four types of tea, namely white tea (WT), green tea (GT), oolong tea (OT) and black tea (BT) using aqueous and methanol extraction techniques. The amount of EGCG was determined using HPLC. The second phase involved the characterization of EGCG compounds in infusion tea bags (ITB) and ready-to-drink tea beverages (RTD) using HPLC. Our findings were that GT contains the highest EGCG concentration in comparison to other tea types using both methanol and aqueous extraction methods. Temperature and extraction times have an influence on the extraction yield. This study also revealed that ready-to-drink tea beverages contains significantly lower levels of EGCG compared to the infusion tea; hence, ready-to-drink beverages are less healthy for consumption, especially for obese and diabetics individuals.
Keywords
Publication history
- Received
- Accepted
- Published online
How to cite
Muhamud, N.A.S.A. and Amran, S.I. (2018). Screening of Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) Contents in Camellia sinensis Products. Asia-Pacific Journal of Food Safety and Security, 4(3), 35-43.