Evaluation of the radioprotective activity of new green tea-collagen materials

The aim of this study was to compare the protective effect of a green tea (Camellia sinensis) extract (GTE) and mixtures of GTE with collagen (COL) (GTE-COL I-V) against ultraviolet (UV) radiation using a primary culture of human dermal fibroblasts. Concentrations of GTE up to 25 μg/ml had a significant positive effect on dermal fibroblast proliferation, spectrophotometrically assayed by the MTT test. However, concentrations of GTE higher than 25 μg/ml, added in the culture medium, induced a cytotoxic effect on dermal fibroblasts. Similar results were found after UV-irradiation, when cells were cultivated in presence of the same concentrations of GTE. On the contrary, the fibroblast growth rate was similar or higher than the control, when cells were seeded on GTE-COL mixtures, even for the variants containing 50 μg/ml and, respectively, 100 μg/ml GTE. These observations were found both before and after cell irradiation. Cell adhesion data were in agreement with these results. Microscopical examination of the cells showed maintenance of the normal fibroblast phenotype, in the presence of all GTE-COL mixtures, before and after irradiation. All these data suggest that the tested GTE-COL materials could be efficient agents for skin protection against UV radiation.

Duke Scholars

Author Oana Craciunescu Radiation Oncology