Catechins: Sources, extraction and encapsulation: A review

Catechins are a group of polyphenolic compounds that extensively occur in the plants. They are widely used as nutraceutical for enhancing human health, pharmaceutical formulations and in ointments or cosmetics for increasing the product shelf life. Catechins can be extracted, isolated from plant sources and delivered in suitable form. Extraction/isolation of catechins and making into stable deliverable form is a challenging task in view of their poor oxidative stability. This review gives an outline of various sources of catechin, their health and physico-chemical properties, extraction and various methods of encapsulation to produce stable deliverable form. Also, it gives the platform to improve the methods of extraction/isolation and development of suitable encapsulation method. (C) 2014 The Institution of Chemical Engineers. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.