Visible Light-Induced Antibacterial Activity of Pigments Extracted from Dregs of Green and Black Teas

Figure 1

Schematic diagram of the research background. The manufacturing process of tea leads to derivatization of naturally occurring chlorophylls in the tea leaves. The derivatives (pheophytins and pheophorbides) are known as potential candidates of photosensitizers for antimicrobial photodynamic therapy. Since these pigments are poorly extracted in water, they could be recovered from the tea dregs for further utilization.