Numerous epidemiological and interventional clinical studies have consistently reported that black tea is good for human health. The polyphenolic compound, theaflavin, and its galloyl esters (theaflavins) are the primary red pigments in black tea that possess several health benefits, including fat-reducing and glucose-lowering capabilities and lifestyle-related disease prevention related to anti-obesity, anticancer, anti-atherosclerotic, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, antibacterial, anti-osteoporotic, and anti-dental caries properties. These compounds are produced by key enzymes, such as polyphenol oxidase and peroxidase, from parent green tea catechins present in fresh green tea leaves during the production of black tea leaves or the fermentation of green tea. However, theaflavins are only present in low concentrations in black tea; thus, their extraction from black tea leaves at sufficient levels for use in medical studies has been difficult. To circumvent this issue, different procedures for the synthesis of theaflavins using chemical oxidizing reagents or enzymes have been studied; however, low yields have limited their utility. Recently, however, several biosynthetic methods have been developed for the mass production of theaflavins. Using these methods, the physiological functions of theaflavins in lifestyle-related diseases in mice and humans have also been studied. In this review, we present the synthesis of theaflavins and their health benefits.
We evaluated the properties and real existence of an electrolyzed-reduced water, which we prepared, and three commercially purchased water goods, that are advertised to have antioxidant activities by the action of "active hydrogen," on the basis of the results of examinations for inhibitory effects on the oxidative reactions of biomolecules, quantitative analyses of the minerals, and the ESR spectral data in measurement of the scavenging ability for reactive oxygen species. The results suggested that all of the examined aqueous solution systems undoubtedly have antioxidant activities in vitro and that such effects are derived from ordinary molecular hydrogen (hydrogen gas) and/or (a) reductive vanadium ion(s). "Active hydrogen" seems to be absent as an effective component of the antioxidant activities of these aqueous solution systems.
Micellization of hexa(oxyethylene) dodecyl ether (C12E6) was studied in water and in ethanol–water mixtures at different temperatures by gel filtration on Sphacryl S-200. Standard enthalpies and entropies of micellization were determined from variation of critical micelle concentration(cmc) with temperature. Compensation plots were obtained, slopes for alcohol–water mixtures being indentical with that for pure water. Therefore, the micelle formation in water and ethanol–water mixtures has been explained in terms of its bulk structure. Gel fitration of C12E6 micelle with addition of a large amount of ethanol has led to a finding that the micelle size gradually becomes small with increasing ethanol content until micelles disappear above 35%v/v.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.