Abstract
Currently, cultivated tea plants are classified into three varieties, namely, C. sinensis var. sinensis, C. sinensis var. assamica, and C. sinensis var. kucha. Three tea varieties made green teas (TVGTs) are widely consumed worldwide. However, a comparative investigation of the beneficial effects, mechanism, and characteristic compounds of TVGTs has not been reported. Here, three representative tea plant varieties, namely, C. sinensis var. sinensis cv. Fuding (FD), C. sinensis var. assamica cv. Yunkang 10 (YK), and C. sinensis var. kucha (KC), planted in the same garden, were used to make green teas utilizing the same standard procedure. Our findings show that the TVGTs effectively improved hyperglycemia, obesity, dyslipidemia, fatty liver, and mesenteric artery (MA) hypercontractility in mice with diabetes and obesity induced by a high-fat diet (HFD) after 11- and 22-week interventions, with YK being the most effective at 22 weeks. Liver lipidomics indicated that the TVGTs restored the glycerophospholipid and sphingolipid balance and reduced triglycerides, with YK demonstrating superior effects. The TVGTs, particularly YK, suppressed triglyceride synthesis through the ARV1-FXR-SHP-SREBP-1c pathway. A chemical profile analysis revealed that YK green tea had enriched active compounds, including caffeine, quinic acid, L-theanine, gallic acid, and catechins, compared with FD and KC green teas, which may contribute to ameliorating diabetic dyslipidemia via synergistic action. As a representative tea variety of C. sinensis var. assamica, YK green tea was found to be superior to the other two green teas in preventing and treating diabetic dyslipidemia, especially with long-term consumption. These data provide important information for tea plant breeders and tea consumers.
