Book Description:
After water, tea signifies the second most frequently consumed beverage worldwide. Teas are not all the same; among the many areas of research that are included in this book are the effects of selenium-containing green tea on food consumption and body weight gain. Research shows that tea consumption may have its strongest effect among patients with cardiovascular disease. A specific chapter investigates whether green tea intake can reduce the risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Research is presented to show that green tea and its major constituent epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) have a potential chemopreventative and/or treatment for a variety of diseases including breast cancer. Other research sheds new light on the molecular basis for the cancer-preventive activity of EGCG in vivo and helps in the design of new strategies to prevent cancer. A further study presents an analysis assessing the progress of research on the mechanisms pertaining to how telomerase activity is regulated by green tea in cancer cells.
Further chapters look at the relationship of tea to diabetes and a description of the beneficial effects of green tea catechins on neuronal functions and neuronal diseases such as dementia. To improve biological functions and industrial applicability of green tea and its by-products, research is presented showing irradiation as a useful method.

Table of Contents:
Preface

Central Functions of Green Tea Components;pp. 1-22
M. Furuse, N. Adachi, S. Tomonaga, H. Yamane, D.M. Denbow, Laboratory of Advanced Animal and Marine Bioresources, Faculty of Agriculture and Graduate School of Bioresources and Bioenvironmental Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan, and others)

Green Tea Catechins: A Class of Molecules with Antimicrobial Activity;pp. 23-43
(P. Buzzini, P. Vignolini, M.Goretti, B. Turchetti, E. Branda, E. Marchegiani, P. Pinelli, A. Romani, Department of Applied Biology-Microbiology, Univ. of Perugia, Italy, and others)

Lipid-soluble green tea polyphenols:stabilized for effective formulation;pp. 45-61
(Ping Chen, Douglas Dickinson, Stephen Hsu, Medical College of Georgia,USA)

Assessment of the Antioxidant Capacity of Green Teas: A Critical Review;pp. 63-80
(Camilo Lopez-Alarcon, Eduardo Lissi, Departamento de Farmacia, Facultad de Quimica, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, and others)

Design and Assessment of the In Vitro Anti-Oxidant Capacity of a Beverage Composed of Green Tea (Camellia Sinensis L) and Lemongrass (Cymbopogon Citratus Stap);pp. 81-101
(D. Fernando Ramos Escudero, Luis Alberto Condezo Hoyos, Monica Ramos Escudero, Jaime A. Yanez, Centro de Investigacion de Bioquimica y Nutricion, Facultad de Medicina Humana, Univ. de San Martin de Porres, Lima, Peru, and others)

Teas are not all the same: In Vitro and In Vivo Antioxidant Activity and Appetite Modulation in Rats of Green Teas with High and Low Levels of Organic Selenium;pp. 103-124
(Abdul L. Molan, Zhuojian Liu, Wenhua Wei, Institute of Food, Nutrition and Human Health, Massey Univ., Palmerston North, New Zealand, and others)

Anti-obesity Effects of (-)-Epigallocathchin 3-gallate and its molecular mechanism;pp. 125-155
(Cheol-Heui Yun, Gi Rak Kim, Min Ji Seo, Hyun-Seuk Moon, Chong-Su Cho, Dept. of Agricultural Biotechnology and Research Institute for Agriculture and Life Sciences, Seoul National University , Seoul, Republic of Korea, and others)

Green Tea: Protective Action Against Pesticides and Other Xenobiotics present in human diet;pp. 157-176
(Geetanjali Kaushik and Poonam Kaushik, Centre for Rural Development and Technology, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Hauz Khas, New Delhi, India)

New Method to Improve the Function and Industrial Applicability of Green Tea and Its Byproducts Using Irradiation Technology;pp. 177-196
(Cheorun Jo, Myung Woo Byun, Dept. of Animal Science and Biotechnology, Chungnam National Univ., Daejeon, Republic of Korea, and others)

Green Tea Catechin As Angiogenesis Inhibitor;pp. 197-206
(Kiminori Matsubara, Yoshiyuki Mizushina, Dept. of Human Life Sciences Education, Graduate School of Education, Hiroshima University, Higashi-Hiroshima, Hiroshima, Japan, and others)

Neuroprotective Effect of Theanine on Cerebral Ischemia;pp. 207-217
(Nobuaki Egashira, Kenichi Mashima, Katsunori Iwasaki, Ryozo Oishi, Michihiro Fujiwara, Dept. of Neuropharmacology, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences , Fukuoka Univ, Fukuoka, Japan, and others)

Characterization Of The Neuroprotective Activity of The Polyphenol (-)-Epigallocatechin-3-Gallate In The Brain;pp. 219-242
(Orly Weinreb, Tamar Amit, Moussa B.H.,Youdim and Silvia Mandel, Eve Topf and USA National Parkinson Foundation Centers of Excellence for Neurodegenerative Disease Research and Department of Pharmacology, Rappaport Family Research Institute, Technion-Faculty of Medicine, Haifa, Isreal)

Cardiovascular and Metabolic Effects of Green Tea;pp. 243-256
(Kamilla Kelemen, Dept. of Cardiology,Angiology and Pneumology, Univ. of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany)

Molecular Basis for the Anti-Cancer Activity of EGCG In Vivo: Molecular-Targeting Prevention of Cancer by Green Tea Catechin;pp. 257-299
(Yoshinori Fujimura, Hirofumi Tachibana, Innovation Center for Medical Redox Navigation, Kyushu Univ., Maidashi, Higashi-ku,Fukuoka, Japan, and others)

Utility of Epigallocatechin gallate in the treatment and prevention of breast cancer: Molecular Mechanisms for Tumor Suppression;pp. 301-323
(R.J. Rosengren, Dept. of Pharmacology & Toxicology, Univ. of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand)

Green Tea Catechins in Colorectal Cancer;pp. 325-345
(Seung Joon Baek and Mugdha Sukhthankar, Laboratory of Environmental Carcinogenesis, Dept. of Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN)

Inhibitory Effect of Catechin Derivatives from Green Tea on DNA Polymerase Activity,Human Cancer Cell Growth and TPA (12-0-Tetradecanoylphorbol-13-Acetate)-Induced Inflammation;pp. 347-362
(Yuko Kumamoto-Yonezawa, Hiromi Yoshida, Yoshiyuki Mizushina, Laboratory of Food & Nutritional Sciences, Dept. of Nutritional Science, KobeGakuin Univ., Nishi-ku, Kobe, Hyogo, Japan, and others)

Telomerase Regulation in Response to Green Tea;pp. 363-382
(Huaping Chen, Trygve O. Tollefsbol, Dept. of Biology, Univ. of Alabama at Birmingham, AL, and others)

Green Tea and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: A Case-Control Study in Japan;pp. 383-392
(Fumi Hirayama, Andy H. Lee, School of Public Health and National Drug Research Institute, Curtin Univ. of Tech., Perth, WA, Australia)

Green Tea and Diabetes;pp. 393-410
(Dongfeng Wang, Linge Wang, Li Zhang, College of Food Science and Engineering, Ocean Univ. of China, Qingdao, China.)

Green Tea and Type 2 Diabetes;pp. 411-418
(Jae-Hyung Park, Dae-Kyu Song, Dept. of Physiology & Chronic Disease Research Center, Keimyung Univ. School of Medicine, Daegu, Korea)

Biocatalytic Conversion of Green Tea Catechins to Epitheaflagallin, Epitheaflagallin, 3-O-gallate, and Theaflavins: Production of Promising Functional Foods;pp. 419-427
(Nobuya Itoh, Yuji Katsube, Dept. of Biotechnology, Faculty of Engineering (Biotechnology Research Center), Toyama Prefectural Univ., Kurokawa, Toyama, Japan, and others)

Preventative Effects of Green Tea Catechins on Dementia;pp. 429-449
(Michio Hashimoto, Md Abdul Haque, Kohinoor Begum Himi, Yukihiko Hara, Dept. of Environmental Physiology, Shimane Univ. Faculty of Medicine, Izumo, Shimane, Japan, and others)

Short Commentary

Green Tea and Potential Human Health Effects;pp. 451-461
(James E. Trosko, Center for Integrated Toxicology, Food Safety Toxicology Center, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State Univ.)

Index