Green Tea (Camellia sinensis) Extract Induces p53-Mediated Cytotoxicity and Inhibits Migration of Breast Cancer Cells.

Danielly C Ferraz Da Costa,Julio B Daleprane,Jerson L Silva,Emmanuele D S Andrade,Mariana Monteiro,Eliane Fialho,Ronimara A Santos

doi:10.3390/foods10123154

Abstract

Green tea (GT) has been shown to play an important role in cancer chemoprevention. However, the related molecular mechanisms need to be further explored, especially regarding the use of GT extract (GTE) from the food matrix. For this study, epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) and epigallocatechin (EGC) were identified in GTE, representing 42 and 40% of the total polyphenols, respectively. MDA-MB-231 (p53-p.R280K mutant) and MCF-7 (wild-type p53) breast tumor cells and MCF-10A non-tumoral cells were exposed to GTE for 24–48 h and cell viability was assessed in the presence of p53 inhibitor pifithrin-α. GTE selectively targeted breast tumor cells without cytotoxic effect on non-tumoral cells and p53 inhibition led to an increase in viable cells, especially in MCF-7, suggesting the involvement of p53 in GTE-induced cytotoxicity. GTE was also effective in reducing MCF-7 and MDA-MD-231 cell migration by 30 and 50%, respectively. An increment in p53 and p21 expression stimulated by GTE was observed in MCF-7, and the opposite phenomenon was found in MDA-MB-231 cells, with a redistribution of mutant-p53 from the nucleus and no differences in p21 levels. All these findings provide insights into the action of GTE and support its anticarcinogenic potential on breast tumor cells.

Highlights

Camellia sinensis leaves provide one of the most popular manufactured drinks in the world, representing the second most consumed beverage after water
We found that GT extract (GTE) selectively targeted MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 cells, reducing cell viability and migration without cytotoxic effect on non-tumoral cells, which suggests a high potential for application in carcinogenesis
High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) analyses of catechin content were performed and, as expected, epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) was the major catechin in GTE, representing 42% of total catechins, followed by EGC (40%), epicatechin gallate (ECG) (12%) and C (6%) (Table 1)

Summary

Introduction

Camellia sinensis leaves provide one of the most popular manufactured drinks in the world, representing the second most consumed beverage after water. China is the largest tea producing country with an output of 1.9 million tons, accounting for more than 38 percent of the world total. Tea is widely consumed all over the countries, especially in China and India, and usually categorized into three types—green, black, and oolong—due to leaf fermentation degree and processing [1,2,3]. Green tea (GT) is produced by drying and steaming tea leaves to prevent fermentation and is considered a great source of natural polyphenols that accounts for 30 to 42% of the composition of the dry extract of the plant, depending on cultivation conditions. The presence of numerous hydroxyl groups in these molecules gives them strong antioxidant properties [4,5]

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