Abstract
It is now accepted that green tea consumption is beneficial to human health. Most of these health benefits are associated with green tea antioxydant activity. Indeed, potent antioxydants belonging to the catechin family, including episode-gallocatechin-gallate (EGCG) are encountered in green tea. Nevertheless, other molecules, such as theanine, e unique amino-acid found in green tea, may also contribute to its beneficial effects. With regards to the central nervous system (CNS); both EGCG and theanine have proved to be neuroprotective in various models of brain injury, such as ischemia and neurodegenerative diseases. This is dur to their ability to cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB). In addition, both molecules seem to exert rapid and long-lasting protective effects. While their long-lasting effects involve genomic actions, rapid effect appear to be restricted to action on neuronal membranes such as the modulation of neurotransmitter receptors.We illustrate here the rapid CNS actions of EGCG and theanine with the demonstration of en anxiolytic activity of EGCG, via the modulation of GABA receptors and the co-agonist activity of L-Theanine towards glutamate N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors. In this line, derivatives synthesized from the theanine backbone are new family of NMDA receptor ligands.