Characterization of the constituents and antioxidant activity of Brazilian green tea (Camellia sinensis var. assamica IAC-259 cultivar) extracts.

Freeze-dried extracts from Camellia sinensis var. assamica IAC-259 cultivar named Brazilian green tea were prepared by hot water and ultrasound-assisted extractions using leaves harvested in spring and summer. Their caffeine and catechin contents were measured by high performance liquid chromatography-diode array detector. The antioxidant activity of the major green tea compounds and Brazilian green tea extracts was evaluated using a 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay. The levels of caffeine were higher in the summer samples (p < 0.05); otherwise, there were no significant variations related to the catechin contents between spring and summer samples. The sonication method using water/acetone as solvent had a high efficiency to extract not only epigallocatechin gallate but also epicatechin gallate (p < 0.05). Antioxidant activities of the Brazilian green tea extracts were not significantly different among seasons and extraction systems. The antioxidant data (IC50) of the Brazilian green tea extracts showed a significant correlation with their epigallocatechin gallate and epicatechin gallate contents (p < 0.05).