General description

Catechins are phytochemicals, richly present in black grapes, peaches, strawberries and broad beans. Catechins occur in various forms such as catechins, epicatechin, epicatechin gallate, epigallocatechin and epigallocatechin gallate.

Application

(+)-Catechin hydrate has been used:

as a polyphenol standard in the determination of total polyphenols in the by-products of red wine
as an additive to study its effects on in vitro methane production and substrate degradation in a triple-fed batch approach
as a substrate to determine the activity of pure L. plantarum CECT 748T 14 recombinant tannase on catechin

Biochem/physiol Actions

An antioxidant flavonoid of plant origin; a free radical scavenger, preventing free radical-mediated damage in a variety of biological systems. For example, at physiological pH catechin suppressed DNA strand breaks by hydroxyl radicals. It has also been shown to prevent human plasma oxidation. It delayed the consumption of endogenous lipid-soluble antioxidants and inhibited lipid oxidation. Catechin may also function as an inhibitor of fatty acid synthase.