title: The Protective Effect of Epigallocatechin-3-gallate on Paraquat-induced Haemolysis.
abstract: Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) is a major ingredient present in green tea, which has a high antioxidant activity. In this study, the effect of EGCG was investigated on paraquat-induced haemolysis of erythrocyte membrane. Erythrocytes were incubated in 0.03, 0.3, 3.0 and 30 mg/mL EGCG, respectively and exposed to 30 mg/mL of paraquat for 10 minutes. The effect of paraquat was determined by an analysis of the osmotic fragility of the erythrocytes. The results showed that EGCG (30 mg/mL) significantly (p < 0.05) reduced the haemolysis of erythrocytes exposed to paraquat (5.0 mg/mL). This suggests that EGCG may have a protective effect on paraquat-induced erythrocyte membrane haemolysis and that consumption of green tea, with high EGCG concentration, could ameliorate the deleterious effect of paraquat toxicity on the haemolysis of erythrocyte membrane.
authors.affiliation: Department of Basic Medical Sciences, The University of the West Indies, Kingston 7, Jamaica, West Indies.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Moses
authors.affiliation: Department of Basic Medical Sciences, The University of the West Indies, Kingston 7, Jamaica, West Indies.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pepple
authors.affiliation: Pharmacology Section, Department of Basic Medical Sciences, The University of the West Indies, Kingston 7, Jamaica, West Indies. pdsinghjm@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Singh