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Green tea and thermogenesis: interactions between catechin-polyphenols, caffeine and sympathetic activity.

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  • 2000-03-07
Published in:
  • International journal of obesity and related metabolic disorders : journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity. - 2000
Adipose Tissue, Brown
Animals
Body Temperature Regulation
Caffeine
Catechin
Central Nervous System Stimulants
Culture Techniques
Ephedrine
Flavonoids
Herb-Drug Interactions
Male
Norepinephrine
Obesity
Oxygen Consumption
Phenols
Plant Extracts
Polymers
Rats
Rats, Sprague-Dawley
Sympathectomy
Sympathetic Nervous System
Tea
English The thermogenic effect of tea is generally attributed to its caffeine content. We report here that a green tea extract stimulates brown adipose tissue thermogenesis to an extent which is much greater than can be attributed to its caffeine content per se, and that its thermogenic properties could reside primarily in an interaction between its high content in catechin-polyphenols and caffeine with sympathetically released noradrenaline (NA). Since catechin-polyphenols are known to be capable of inhibiting catechol-O-methyl-transferase (the enzyme that degrades NA), and caffeine to inhibit trancellular phosphodiesterases (enzymes that break down NA-induced cAMP), it is proposed that the green tea extract, via its catechin-polyphenols and caffeine, is effective in stimulating thermogenesis by relieving inhibition at different control points along the NA-cAMP axis. Such a synergistic interaction between catechin-polyphenols and caffeine to augment and prolong sympathetic stimulation of thermogenesis could be of value in assisting the management of obesity. International Journal of Obesity (2000) 24, 252-258
Language
  • English
Open access status
bronze
Identifiers
Persistent URL
https://sonar.ch/global/documents/123761
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