Enhancement of the phagocytic activity of macrophage-like cells with a crude polysaccharide derived from green tea (Camellia sinensis) extract.

To identify the immunostimulants included in green tea extract, we investigated a crude tea polysaccharide related to increases in phagocytic activity using macrophage-like cells, and found that the crude tea polysaccharide from immature tea leaves included many RNAs as compared with that from mature tea leaves. Furthermore, the crude tea polysaccharide increased phagocytosis through toll-like receptor 7.