title: Green tea epigallocatechin-3-gallate attenuates Porphyromonas gingivalis-induced atherosclerosis.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to determine whether epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) ameliorates Porphyromonas gingivalis-induced atherosclerosis. EGCG is a polyphenol extract from green tea with health benefits and P. gingivalis is shown here to accelerate atheroma formation in a murine model. Apolipoprotein E knockout mice were administered EGCG or vehicle in drinking water; they were then fed high-fat diets and injected with P. gingivalis three times a week for 3 weeks. Mice were then killed at 15 weeks. Atherosclerotic plaques in the proximal aorta were determined by Oil Red O staining. Atherosclerosis risk factors in serum, liver or aorta were analysed using cytokine antibody arrays, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and real-time PCR. Atherosclerotic lesion areas of the aortic sinus caused by P. gingivalis infection decreased in EGCG-treated groups, wherein EGCG reduced the production of C-reactive protein, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1, and oxidized low-density lipoprotein (LDL), and slightly lowered LDL/very LDL cholesterol in P. gingivalis-challenged mice serum. Furthermore, the increase in CCL2, MMP-9, ICAM-1, HSP60, CD44, LOX-1, NOX-4, p22phox and iNOS gene expression levels in the aorta of P. gingivalis-challenged mice were reduced in EGCG-treated mice. However, HO-1 mRNA levels were elevated by EGCG treatment, suggesting that EGCG, as a natural substance, inhibits P. gingivalis-induced atherosclerosis through anti-inflammatory and antioxidative effects.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Nihon University School of Dentistry at Matsudo, Chiba, Japan.
authors.forename: Yu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Cai
authors.forename: Tomoko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kurita-Ochiai
authors.forename: Tomomi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hashizume
authors.forename: Masafumi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yamamoto
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001011:Aorta / Q000473:pathology; D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000473:pathology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D016866:Bacteroidaceae Infections / Q000150:complications* / Q000382:microbiology*; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000032:analysis; D002392:Catechin / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000627:therapeutic use; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D016966:Porphyromonas gingivalis / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D020947:Tea Tree Oil / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents; D015415:Biomarkers; D020947:Tea Tree Oil; D002392:Catechin; C045651:epigallocatechin gallate