The Effect of Green Tea Catechin on Epithelial Cancer Cell Lines

Park, Jeong Hyun; Kim, Dae Joong; Hahn, Jang Hee; Kim, Hong Tae; Jung, Yong Wook; Sung, Hoon Ki; Kim, Joo Young; Song, In Hwan; Sung, Eon Gi; Lee, Yung Chang

Abstract

Catechin is main component of polyphenol extracts from green tea, it is associated with prevention of hypertension and atherosclerosis, anti-diabetic effect, antioxidant, antitumor. The purpose of this research is to investigate the effect and its mechanism of green tea catechin on epithelial cancer cell lines in various concentrations and durations. For this study, epithelial cancer cell lines, A549 (lung cancer), EATC (Ehrlich-Lettre ascites tumor cell) were used. Inverted, light, confocal and electron microscopes were applied to find morphological changes. MTT assay, flowcytometric analysis, gel electrophoresis were used to compare severity of cellular damages to control after exposure to 1, 10, 100 and 500 microgram/ml catechin for 48 hours. In the A549 cells, after 1 microgram/ml and 10 microgram/ml catechin treatments, there was no notable changes. However, exposure to 100 microgram/ml catechin induced increase of cytoplasmic granules, destruction of lamellar body, inhibition of cell cycle, especially G0/G1. In the early phase of 500 microgram/ml catechin administration, decrease of cell population, severe destruction of lamellar bodies and mitochondria, derangement of cell cycle were shown. In the EATC, such as those effects occurred after exposure to lower concentration of catechin than in that of A549 cells. After exposure of 10 microgram/ml catechin, rounded-up cells and necrotic cells were found. Whereas, most of cells were under apoptotic changes-cytoplasmic condensation, nuclear fragmentation, cellular shrinkage, ladder pattern in the electrophoresis, when administrated 100 microgram/ml catechin. These results suggested that exposure of catechin induced severe cellular damage and growth inhibition in dose- and time-dependent manner. And we confirmed that these effects of catechin were involved with apoptosis, necrosis and cell cycle arrest and were quite different according to cancer type. Therefore, much more research would be demanded before clinical application of catechin to human cancer therapy and this study would be the basic source for further study of green tea.