Cancer preventive mechanisms of the green tea polyphenol (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate.

Accumulating evidence indicates that consumption of tea, especially green tea, is good for preventing cancer. To elucidate the cancer preventive mechanisms of green tea, much effort has been devoted to investigating the anticancer effects of (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), the major component of green tea. It has been revealed that EGCG restrained carcinogenesis in a variety of tissues through inhibition of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK), growth factor-related cell signaling, activation of activator protein 1 (AP-1) and nuclear factor-B (NF-kappaB), topoisomerase I, matrix metalloproteinases and other potential targets. Therefore, EGCG is a multipotent anticancer agent, which not only provides solid evidence to support the anticancer potential of green tea, but also offers new clues for discovering multiple-targeted anticancer drugs.