Epicatechin gallate explained

Epicatechin gallate (ECG) is a flavan-3-ol, a type of flavonoid, present in green tea.^[1] It is also reported in buckwheat^[2] and in grape.^[3]

The tea component epicatechin gallate is being researched because in vitro experiments showed it can reverse methicillin resistance in bacteria such as Staphylococcus aureus.^[1] Nevertheless, the compound is significantly degraded by steeping in boiling water, unlike related catechins.^[4]

Epicatechin, as well as many other flavonoids, has been found to act as a non-selective antagonist of the opioid receptors, albeit with somewhat low affinity.^[5]

See also

• List of phytochemicals in food
• Green tea extract

Notes and References

1. 10746177. 1999. Shiota. S. Shimizu. M. Mizushima. T. Ito. H. Hatano. T. Yoshida. T. Tsuchiya. T. Marked reduction in the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of beta-lactams in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus produced by epicatechin gallate, an ingredient of green tea (Camellia sinensis). 22. 12. 1388–90. Biological & Pharmaceutical Bulletin. 10.1248/bpb.22.1388. free.
2. 10.1021/jf062815i. Determination of Rutin, Catechin, Epicatechin, and Epicatechin Gallate in BuckwheatFagopyrum esculentumMoench by Micro-High-Performance Liquid Chromatography with Electrochemical Detection. 2007. Danila. Ana-Maria. Kotani. Akira. Hakamata. Hideki. Kusu. Fumiyo. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. 55. 4. 1139–43. 17253718.
3. 10.1016/0031-9422(96)00301-9. Polymeric proanthocyanidins from grape skins. 1996. Souquet. Jean-Marc. Cheynier. Véronique. Brossaud. Franck. Moutounet. Michel. Phytochemistry. 43. 2. 509–512.
4. Saklar . Sena . Ertas . Erdal . Ozdemir . Ibrahim S. . Karadeniz . Bulent . Effects of different brewing conditions on catechin content and sensory acceptance in Turkish green tea infusions . Journal of Food Science and Technology . October 2015 . 52 . 10 . 6639–6646 . 10.1007/s13197-015-1746-y . 26396411 . 4573099 .
5. Katavic PL, Lamb K, Navarro H, Prisinzano TE . Flavonoids as opioid receptor ligands: identification and preliminary structure-activity relationships . J. Nat. Prod. . 70 . 8 . 1278–82 . August 2007 . 17685652 . 2265593 . 10.1021/np070194x .