Diastereomeric Ellagitannin Isomers from Penthorum chinense.

From the dried stem of Penthorum chinense (Penthoraceae), 1-O-galloyl-4,6-(R)-hexahydroxydiphenoyl (HHDP)-ß-D-glucose and 2',4',6'-trihydroxyacetophenone 4'-O-[4,6-(R)-HHDP]-ß-D-glucoside were isolated together with their (S)-HHDP isomers. Ellagitannins with a 4,6-(S)-HHDP-glucose moiety are widely distributed in the plant kingdom; however, 4,6-(R)-HHDP glucoses are extremely rare. Lowest-energy conformers of 1-O-galloyl-(S)- and (R)-HHDP-glucopyranoses were derived by density functional theory calculations, and the calculated (1)H and (13)C NMR chemical shifts and the (1)H-(1)H coupling constants were in agreement with the experimental values. The results revealed a conformational difference of the diastereomeric macrocyclic ester rings. In addition, a new compound, 1',3',5'-trihydroxybenzene 1'-O-[4,6-(S)-HHDP]-ß-D-glucoside, was also isolated.

A new catechin oxidation product and polymeric polyphenols of post-fermented tea.

A new epicatechin oxidation product with a 3,6-dihydro-6-oxo-2H-pyran-2-carboxylic acid moiety was isolated from a commercially available post-fermented tea that is produced by microbial fermentation of green tea. The structure of this product was determined by spectroscopic methods. A production mechanism that includes the oxygenative cleavage of the catechol B-ring of (-)-epicatechin is proposed. In addition, polymeric polyphenols were separated from the post-fermented tea and partially characterised by (13)C NMR spectroscopy and gel-permeation chromatography. The polymers appear to be primarily composed of epigalloacetechin-3-O-gallate and the molecular weight (Mn) of the acetylated form was estimated to be ∼3500.

Biomimetic one-pot preparation of a black tea polyphenol theasinensin A from epigallocatechin gallate by treatment with copper(II) chloride and ascorbic acid.

Chromatographic separation of black tea polyphenols is too difficult to supply sufficient quantities of pure compounds for biological experiments. Thus, facile methods to prepare black tea constituents were desired. Treatment of epigallocatechin gallate with copper(II) chloride efficiently afforded an unstable quinone dimer, dehydrotheasinensin A, and subsequent treatment with ascorbic acid stereoselectively yielded theasinensin A. The latter is a dimer with an R-biphenyl bond, one of the major polyphenols found in black tea. The method is simpler and more effective than enzymatic preparation.

Polyphenols in lahpet-so and two new catechin metabolites produced by anaerobic microbial fermentation of green tea.

The phenolic constituents of lahpet-so, a traditional postfermented tea of Myanmar produced under anaerobic conditions, were examined. The major polyphenols were identified to be pyrogallol and 4'-hydroxyphenyl-3-(2'',4'',6''-trihydroxyphenyl)-propan-2-ol, 3',4'-dihydroxyphenyl-3-(2'',4'',6''-trihydroxyphenyl)-propan-2-ol, and 3',4',5'-trihydroxyphenyl-3-(2'',4'',6''-trihydroxyphenyl)-propan-2-ol. The hydroxydiphenylpropan-2-ols were identical to the initial metabolites produced from green tea catechins by mammalian intestinal bacteria. In addition, an anaerobic mixed-fermentation experiment using lahpet-so and Japanese commercial green tea afforded two new catechin degradation products together with known compound bruguierol B and the above-mentioned catechin metabolites. Based on spectroscopic evidence, the structures of the new compounds were concluded to be 4-(2,5-dihydroxyhexyl)benzene-1,2-diol and (5S,8R)-6,7,8,9-tetrahydro-5-methyl-5·8-epoxy-5H-benzocycloheptene-2,3,4-triol. Interestingly, the production mechanism was deduced to be the inverse of the biosynthesis of the flavan-3-ol A ring.

Polyphenol composition of a functional fermented tea obtained by tea-rolling processing of green tea and loquat leaves.

Phenolic constituents of a new functional fermented tea produced by tea-rolling processing of a mixture (9:1) of tea leaves and loquat leaves were examined in detail. The similarity of the phenolic composition to that of black tea was indicated by high-performance liquid chromatography comparison with other tea products. Twenty-five compounds, including three new catechin oxidation products, were isolated, and the structures of the new compounds were determined to be (2R)-2-hydroxy-3-(2,4,6-trihydroxyphenyl)-1-(3,4,5-trihydroxyphenyl)-1-propanone 2-O-gallate, dehydrotheasinensin H, and acetonyl theacitrin A by spectroscopic methods. In addition, theacitrinin A and theasinensin H were obtained for the first time from commercial tea products. Isolation of these new and known compounds confirms that reactions previously demonstrated by in vitro model experiments actually occur when fresh tea leaves are mechanically distorted and bruised during the production process.