Herbal Therapy: Green Tea and its Bioactive Egallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) in Reduced Risk, Progression and Treatment of Lupus

Kyle J. Norton 

Green tea may have a therapeutic and positive effect in reduced risk and treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), some scientists suggested.

Green tea is a precious drink processes numbers of health benefit known to almost everyone in Asia and Western world.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease characterized by the body's immune system abnormal function in attacking healthy tissue in many parts of the body.

In the study of patient with lupus nephritis induced by SLE, researchers found that intake of green tea epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), the major bioactive polyphenol displayed a strong antioxidant effect in reduced expression of reactive oxygen species in activated the activity of proinflammatory factors nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB), a protein complex mediated inflammatory responses under stress stimuli in induction of inflammation.

Further analysis, also indicated that application of green tea EGCG decreased levels of interleukin (IL)-1β and IL-18, the inflammatory cytokines which were found to have a closed link to inflammation and correlated with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

Moreover, in the evaluation of 12-week-old New Zealand black/white (NZB/W) F1 lupus-prone mice treated daily with EGCG by gavage until sacrificed at 34 weeks old, researchers at the National Defense Medical Center found that green tea ingestion exerts a strong effect in prevented proteinuria, renal function impairment, and severe renal lesions through increased repression of antioxidant mediated by renal nuclear factor E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) and enhanced natural antioxidant of glutathione peroxidase produced by the host body.

The over expression of antioxidant activity participated by green tea EGCG also ameliorated the free radical in expression of renal oxidative stress, through reduced NF-κB activation in production of inflammatory cytokine and increased anti inflammatory NLRP3 mRNA/protein expression and mature caspase-1, IL-1β, and IL-18 in response to inflammation caused by immune abnormal activity in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

The result of the study also found that green tea EGCG also enhanced splenic regulatory T (Treg) cell activity in maintain immunologic homeo-stasis and inhibited autoimmunity.

Additional study of green tea, egallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) effect in lupus, researchers suggested that green tea exerted a profound anti-inflammatory activity on immune cells through inhibiting the immune-stimulated phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway in attenuated inflammatory response.

In fact the expression of green tea EGCG also reduced the production of nitric oxide (NO) and other inflammatory mediators including iNOS expression, supernatant NO and interleukin-6 in initiation of mesangial cells inflammation in the kidney under abnormal immunity in patients of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

Dr. Peairs A, after taking into account of other co founders said, " EGCG attenuated inflammation in MRL/lpr mouse mesangial cells via the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway" and "EGCG to regulate inflammation and control autoimmune disease".

The result of above differentiation were supported by the study conduced by the Medical College of Georgia in the evaluation of the green tea polyphenol, (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), affects autoantigen expression in human cells.

Dr. Hsu S, at the end of the experiment, postulated that green tea bioactive polyphenols EGCG inhibited the transcription and translation of major autoantigens, including SS-B/La, SS-A/Ro, coilin, DNA topoisomerase I, and alpha-fodrin through its anti inflammatory and anti apoptotic tissue effects.

Taken togther, green tea and its bioactive component egallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) may be considered  as a functional food in reduced risk and progression and combined with conventional therapy for treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). However, intake of green tea supplement should be taken with care in prevented liver acute toxicity.

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Author Biography
Kyle J. Norton (Scholar, Master of Nutrients, All right reserved)
Health article writer and researcher; Over 10.000 articles and research papers have been written and published on line, including world wide health, ezine articles, article base, healthblogs, selfgrowth, best before it's news, the karate GB daily, etc.,.
Named TOP 50 MEDICAL ESSAYS FOR ARTISTS & AUTHORS TO READ by Disilgold.com Named 50 of the best health Tweeters Canada - Huffington Post
Nominated for shorty award over last 4 years
Some articles have been used as references in medical research, such as international journal Pharma and Bio science, ISSN 0975-6299.

Sources
(1) Epigallocatechin-3-gallate prevents lupus nephritis development in mice via enhancing the Nrf2 antioxidant pathway and inhibiting NLRP3 inflammasome activation by Tsai PY1, Ka SM, Chang JM, Chen HC, Shui HA, Li CY, Hua KF, Chang WL, Huang JJ, Yang SS, Chen A.(PubMed)
(2) Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) attenuates inflammation in MRL/lpr mouse mesangial cells by Peairs A1, Dai R, Gan L, Shimp S, Rylander MN, Li L, Reilly CM.(PubMed)
(3) Inhibition of autoantigen expression by (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (the major constituent of green tea) in normal human cells by Hsu S1, Dickinson DP, Qin H, Lapp C, Lapp D, Borke J, Walsh DS, Bollag WB, Stöppler H, Yamamoto T, Osaki T, Schuster G.(PubMed)