Tea catechin and caffeine activate brown adipose tissue and increase cold-induced thermogenic capacity in humans

• Published in: The American journal of clinical nutrition Vol. 105; no. 4; pp. 873 - 881
• Main Authors: Yoneshiro, Takeshi, Matsushita, Mami, Hibi, Masanobu, Tone, Hiroshi, Takeshita, Masao, Yasunaga, Koichi, Katsuragi, Yoshihisa, Kameya, Toshimitsu, Sugie, Hiroki, Saito, Masayuki
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Oxford University Press 01.04.2017; American Society for Clinical Nutrition, Inc
• Subjects: Adaptation, Physiological - drug effects; Adipose tissue; Adipose tissue (brown); Adipose Tissue, Brown - drug effects; Adult; beverages; brown adipose tissue; Caffeine; Caffeine - pharmacology; Camellia sinensis - chemistry; Catechin; Catechin - pharmacology; Chronic effects; cold; cold stress; Cold Temperature; Cross-Over Studies; Emission analysis; Energy expenditure; Energy Metabolism; Glucose; Green tea; heat production; Humans; Ingestion; long term effects; Male; males; Men; Nutrition; placebos; Plant Extracts - pharmacology; Positron emission; Positron emission tomography; Recruitment; Regression analysis; Single-Blind Method; Tea; Tea - chemistry; Thermogenesis; Thermogenesis - drug effects; Tissues; tomography; volunteers; Young Adult; catechin; cold-induced thermogenesis; brown adipose tissue; energy expenditure; healthy humans
• ISSN: 0002-9165; 1938-3207; 1938-3207
• DOI: 10.3945/ajcn.116.144972

ABSTRACT Background: The thermogenic effects of green tea catechin have been repeatedly reported, but their mechanisms are poorly understood. Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the acute and chronic effects of catechin on brown adipose tissue (BAT), a site specialized for nonshivering thermogenesis, in humans. Design: Fifteen healthy male volunteers underwent fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography to assess BAT activity. To examine the acute catechin effect, whole-body energy expenditure (EE) after a single oral ingestion of a beverage containing 615 mg catechin and 77 mg caffeine (catechin beverage) was measured. Next, to investigate the chronic catechin effects, 10 men with low BAT activity were enrolled. Before and after ingestion of the catechin beverage 2 times/d for 5 wk, cold-induced thermogenesis (CIT) after 2 h of cold exposure at 19°C, which is proportional to BAT activity, was examined. Both the acute and chronic trials were single-blinded, randomized, placebo-controlled, season-matched crossover studies. Results: A single ingestion of the catechin beverage increased EE in 9 subjects who had metabolically active BAT (mean ± SEM: +15.24 ± 1.48 kcal, P < 0.01) but not in 6 subjects who had negligible activities (mean ± SEM: +3.42 ± 2.68 kcal). The ingestion of a placebo beverage containing 82 mg caffeine produced a smaller and comparative EE response in the 2 subject groups. Multivariate regression analysis revealed a significant interaction between BAT and catechin on EE (β = 0.496, P = 0.003). Daily ingestion of the catechin beverage elevated mean ± SEM CIT (from 92.0 ± 26.5 to 197.9 ± 27.7 kcal/d; P = 0.009), whereas the placebo beverage did not change it. Conclusion: Orally ingested tea catechin with caffeine acutely increases EE associated with increased BAT activity and chronically elevates nonshivering CIT, probably because of the recruitment of BAT, in humans. These trials were registered at www.umin.ac.jp/ctr/ as UMIN000016361.