Mitigation of Fumonisin Biomarkers by Green Tea Polyphenols in a High-Risk Population of Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Green tea polyphenols (GTP) are highly effective in inhibiting a variety of tumorigenic effects induced by carcinogens. In this study we assessed GTP mitigation on biomarkers of fumonisin B1 (FB1), a class 2B carcinogen, in blood and urine samples collected from an intervention trial. A total of 124 exposed people were recruited and randomly assigned to low-dose (GTP 500 mg, n = 42), high-dose (GTP 1,000 mg, n = 41) or placebo (n = 41) for 3 months. After one-month of intervention, urinary FB1 was significantly decreased in high-dose group compared to that of placebo group (p = 0.045), with reduction rates of 18.95% in the low-dose group and 33.62% in the high-dose group. After three-month intervention, urinary FB1 showed significant decrease in both low-dose (p = 0.016) and the high-dose (p = 0.0005) groups compared to that of both placebo group and baseline levels, with reduction rates of 40.18% in the low-dose group and 52.6% in the high-dose group. GTP treatment also significantly reduced urinary excretion of sphinganine (Sa), sphingosine (So), and Sa/So ratio, but had no effect on serum Sa, So, and Sa/So ratio. Analysis with mixed-effect model revealed significant interactions between time and treatment effects of GTP on both urinary free FB1 levels and Sa/So ratios.