Uncovering the Benefits of Epicatechin for Oxidative Stress in Human Health

Authors : Okan Sancer, Muhammet Yusuf Tepebaşı, Uğur Şahin, İlter İlhan

Pages : 75-81

Doi:10.22312/sdusbed.1539732

View : 59 | Download : 58

Publication Date : 2025-04-25

Article Type : Research Paper

Abstract :Objective: Epicatechin (EC) is one of the major components of green tea catechins. This study investigated the effect of the amount of epicatechin obtained by brewing green tea under optimal conditions against oxidative stress induced by hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). Materials and Methods: In peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs), the amount of epicatechin determined by brewing green tea under optimum conditions was applied against 250 µM H2O2 and cell viability was determined by MTT test, total antioxidant status (TAS) and total oxidant status (TOS) were determined by biochemical analysis, apoptosis-related Bax, Bcl2, p53 expression analysis was determined by qRT-PCR method. Results: The cell viability was significantly higher in the H2O2+EC group than in the H2O2 group (p< 0.001). TOS and TAS were changed considerably in the H2O2+EC group compared to the H2O2 group (p<0.05 and p<0.001, respectively). Bax, p53 expression level decreased in H2O2+epicatechin treated cells compared to H2O2 treated cells (p<0.001 and p<0.01 respectively), while Bcl2 expression level increased in H2O2+epicatechin treated cells compared to H2O2 treated cells p<0.01). Conclusion: The results show that the amount of epicatechin obtained from brewing green tea under optimum conditions has a protective effect on PBMCs against H2O2 induced oxidative stress. Specifically, it was concluded that epicatechin increased cell viability, decreased oxidative stress markers and modulated the expression of key apoptosis-related proteins, thus promoting cell survival.
Keywords : Bax, Bcl2, epikateşin, oksidatif stres, p53

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