Green Tea Ameliorates Hyperglycemia by Promoting the Translocation of Glucose Transporter 4 in the Skeletal Muscle of Diabetic Rodents.

It is known that green tea helps prevent obesity and diabetes mellitus. In this study, we aimed to determine whether green tea ameliorates hyperglycemia and the mechanism involved in diabetic rodents. Green tea consumption reduced blood glucose and ameliorated glucose intolerance, which was assessed using an oral glucose tolerance test in both streptozotocin-induced type 1 diabetic rats and type 2 diabetic KK-Ay mice. Green tea also reduced the plasma fructosamine and glycated hemoglobin concentrations in both models. Furthermore, it increased glucose uptake into the skeletal muscle of both model animals, which was accompanied by greater translocation of glucose transporter 4 (GLUT4). Moreover, epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), the principal catechin in green tea, also ameliorated glucose intolerance in high-fat diet-induced obese and diabetic mice. These results suggest that green tea can ameliorate hyperglycemia in diabetic rodents by stimulating GLUT4-mediated glucose uptake in skeletal muscle, and that EGCG is one of the effective compounds that mediate this effect.

Epigallocatechin gallate induces GLUT4 translocation in skeletal muscle through both PI3K- and AMPK-dependent pathways.

Our previous report demonstrated that epigallocatechin gallate (EGCg) promotes translocation of glucose transporter 4 (GLUT4) in skeletal muscle. In this study, we investigated the molecular mechanism of GLUT4 translocation by EGCg at the physiological concentration range. In L6 cells, EGCg induced phosphorylation of phosphatidylinositide 3'-kinase (PI3K) and downstream protein kinase C (PKC) λ/ξ without affecting the phosphorylation of insulin receptor and Akt. EGCg-induced GLUT4 translocation was suppressed by RNA interference-mediated knockdown of PI3K and treatment with PKC inhibitor Go6983. Moreover, EGCg increased Rac1 activity and actin remodelling as downstream events of PKCλ/ξ. These results indicate that EGCg induced GLUT4 translocation through a PI3K-dependent pathway, but its mode of action differed from that of insulin. EGCg also induced GLUT4 translocation through a 5'-adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK)-dependent pathway. 67 kDa laminin receptor, which is a target molecule of EGCg, was not involved in EGCg-induced glucose uptake in L6 cells. The oral administration of EGCg suppressed postprandial hyperglycaemia accompanied by GLUT4 translocation through both PI3K- and AMPK-dependent pathways, and promoted glycogen accumulation in skeletal muscle of ICR mice. EGCg promotes GLUT4 translocation through both PI3K- and AMPK-dependent pathways and glycogen accumulation in skeletal muscle.

Substitution at the C-3 Position of Catechins Has an Influence on the Binding Affinities against Serum Albumin.

It is known that catechins interact with the tryptophan (Trp) residue at the drug-binding site of serum albumin. In this study, we used catechin derivatives to investigate which position of the catechin structure strongly influences the binding affinity against bovine serum albumin (BSA) and human serum albumin (HSA). A docking simulation showed that (-)-epigallocatechin gallate (EGCg) interacted with both Trp residues of BSA (one at drug-binding site I and the other on the molecular surface), mainly by π-π stacking. Fluorescence analysis showed that EGCg and substituted EGCg caused a red shift of the peak wavelength of Trp similarly to warfarin (a drug-binding site I-specific compound), while 3-O-acyl-catechins caused a blue shift. To evaluate the binding affinities, the quenching constants were determined by the Stern-Volmer equation. A gallate ester at the C-3 position increased the quenching constants of the catechins. Against BSA, acyl substitution increased the quenching constant proportionally to the carbon chain lengths of the acyl group, whereas methyl substitution decreased the quenching constant. Against HSA, neither acyl nor methyl substitution affected the quenching constant. In conclusion, substitution at the C-3 position of catechins has an important influence on the binding affinity against serum albumin.

Measurement of Glucose Uptake in Cultured Cells.

Facilitative glucose uptake transport systems are ubiquitous in animal cells and are responsible for transporting glucose across cell surface membranes. Evaluation of glucose uptake is crucial in the study of numerous diseases and metabolic disorders such as myocardial ischemia, diabetes mellitus, and cancer. Detailed in this unit are laboratory methods for assessing glucose uptake into mammalian cells. The unit is divided into five sections: (1) a brief overview of glucose uptake assays in cultured cells; (2) a method for measuring glucose uptake using radiolabeled 3-O-methylglucose; (3) a method for measuring glucose uptake using radiolabeled 2-deoxyglucose (2DG); (4) a microplate method for measuring 2DG-uptake using an enzymatic, fluorometric assay; and (5) a microplate-based method using a fluorescent analog of 2DG.

3-O-Acyl-epicatechins Increase Glucose Uptake Activity and GLUT4 Translocation through Activation of PI3K Signaling in Skeletal Muscle Cells.

Tea catechins promote glucose uptake in skeletal muscle cells. In this study, we investigated whether the addition of an acyl group to the C-3 position of catechins to generate 3-O-acyl-catechins promoted glucose uptake in L6 myotubes. 3-O-Myristoyl-(-)-epicatechin (EC-C14) and 3-O-palmitoyl-(-)-epicatechin (EC-C16) promoted glucose uptake and translocation of glucose transporter (GLUT) 4 in the cells. The effect of 3-O-acyl-(-)-epicatechins was stronger than that of (-)-epicatechin (EC), whereas neither 3-O-myristoyl-(+)-catechin (C-C14) nor 3-O-palmitoyl-(+)catechin (C-C16) promoted glucose uptake or GLUT4 translocation as well as (+)-catechin (C). We further investigated an affinity of catechins and 3-O-acyl-catechins to the lipid bilayer membrane by using surface plasma resonance analysis. Maximum binding amounts of EC-C16 and C-C16 to the lipid bilayer clearly increased compared with that of (-)-EC and (+)-C, respectively. We also examined the mechanism of GLUT4 translocation and found EC-C14 and EC-C16 induced the phosphorylation of PI3K, but did not affect phosphorylation of Akt or IR. In conclusion, the addition of an acyl group to the C-3 position of (-)-EC increases its affinity for the lipid bilayer membrane and promotes GLUT4 translocation through PI3K-dependent pathways in L6 myotubes.