Green Tea Extract as an Environmentally Friendly Antibacterial Agent Against Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato on Plants

Green tea contains polyphenols, such as tannins and catechins, that are effective against bacteria. As it is naturally produced by plants, green tea has been explored as an environmentally friendly antibacterial product for use in human health. However, there are very few reports of green tea extract being used as an antibacterial product to protect plants from various bacterial diseases. In this study, we demonstrated that green tea extract could inhibit the growth of Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato, the causal agent of tomato bacterial leaf spot disease, on agar plates. We also demonstrated that spraying green tea extract on Nicotiana benthamiana plants could inhibit the growth of P. syringae on plant leaves. Therefore, we conclude that green tea extract has the potential to be used as a ‘green’ antibacterial product in agriculture production.