Role of Epigallocatechin-3-Gallate from Green Tea in Iron Chelation and Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress Pathway in Colorectal Cancer Cells
December 2018
TLDR Green tea compound EGCG could potentially treat colorectal cancer by removing iron and causing stress in cancer cells leading to their death.
The 2018 study by Md Nesran, Zarith Nameyra investigated the role of epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), a bioactive compound in green tea, in targeting iron chelation and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress pathway in colorectal cancer cells. The study used colorectal cancer cell line (HT-29) and normal cell line (embryonic fibroblast 3T3). The results showed that EGCG was toxic to HT-29 cells at all incubation times, but not toxic to 3T3 cells. EGCG up-regulated transferrin protein and down-regulated ferritin-H protein, indicating iron chelation activity in HT-29. It also induced ER stress in HT-29 by up-regulating several proteins. This iron chelation activity by EGCG caused iron depletion and generation of reactive oxygen species in the HT-29 cells, leading to ER stress and activation of the unfolded protein response, resulting in apoptosis. The study concluded that EGCG is a potential compound to treat colorectal cancer by targeting iron chelation and ER stress pathway.