Antimalarial properties of green tea
Author: Anna Rosa Sannella and Luigi Messori and Angela Casini and Franco Francesco Vincieri and Anna Rita Bilia and Giancarlo Majori and Carlo Severini
We show here that a crude extract of green tea as well as two of its main constituents, epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) and epicatechin gallate (ECG), strongly inhibit Plasmodium falciparum growth in vitro. Both these catechins are found to potentiate the antimalarial effects of artemisinin without interfering with the folate pathway. The importance of these findings and their mechanistic implications are discussed in view of future therapeutic strategies.
