Polyphenols have credentials to tackle the oxidative stress. Oxidative stress is the imbalance between free radicals production and antioxidant enzymes ability to tackle these radicals resulting the onset various metabolic related disorders. Polyphenols based foods have credential as a shield against these glitches mainly owing to their antioxidant potential. In this context, tea polyphenols have gained paramount attention of scientific community as therapeutic agents for the prevention and treatment of various oxidative stress induce maladies owing to their structural diversity, strong antioxidant ability and capacity to modulate various expression involved in the pathogenesis of these maladies. The notable polyphenols are catechins which are mainly present in green tea and further subdivided into various compounds like ECG, EGC, EGCG which has their unique therapeutic potential. The catechins undergo various structural changes and transformed into theaflavins and thearubigins in the process of black tea formation. These are high molecular weight polyphenols and promising candidates in obesity, diabetes and cancer treatment. Mechanistically, these polyphenols ameliorate oxidative stress by trapping the noxious radicals like superoxide and peroxyl, promote the activity of glutathione, suppressing the malondialdehyde (MDA) activity. The current chapter is an attempt to highlight the therapeutic potential of tea polyphenols.
Part of the book: Polyphenols
Medicinal plants are gaining popularity as folk medicine due to future demand to get rid of synthetic health promoting medicines. Nowadays, black tea is gaining interest as the most frequently consumed therapeutic drink after the water. The importance of black tea is due to existence of flavonoids such as (Thearubigins (TRs) and theaflavins (TFs) and catechins) that are the main therapeutic agents and are more bio-direct and stable compounds compared to those exist in other herbal plants alongside some other promising compounds which enhance is credentials as therapeutic drug. Numerous scientific explorations have elucidated the biological worth of these bioactive moieties against plethora of ailments with special reference to metabolic disorder. The mandate of current chapter is to discuss the black tea chemistry for elucidating its pharmacological worth.
Part of the book: Tea
Part of the book: Resveratrol
Resveratrol, a bioactive phytochemical classified as a phytoalexin present in plant sources, is recognized for its distinct characteristics such as anticancer, chemoprotective, chemosensitizer, neuroprotective, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties. Resveratrol is a polyphenol that increases the susceptibility of cancer-resistant cells to chemotherapy. Resveratrol also aids in weight loss by decreasing lipogenesis, the prevention of neurological illnesses, and other topical uses such as the treatment of skin hyperpigmentation. During the past 10 years, resveratrol, a naturally occurring stilbene found in various foods and drinks, has drawn increased interest due to its many health benefits, including its chemo-preventive and anticancer actions. Several naturally occurring resveratrol derivatives can be found in food and share a similar structural makeup with resveratrol. To boost the effectiveness and activity of particular resveratrol features, several resveratrol analogues have also been created by the addition of designated functional groups. Such resveratrol derivatives might provide beneficial cancer therapeutics and cancer chemo-preventive drugs for cancer prevention and therapy. However, the quest for the identification of new analogues with high yield must be explored to extend resveratrol effectiveness. This chapter provides an overview of the most significant resveratrol derivatives used to treat cardiovascular diseases and the methods of their synthesis.
Part of the book: Resveratrol