3.5. Assay of nitric oxide scavenging activity
Nitric oxide is a reactive oxygen species involved in inflammation, cancer and other pathological conditions . One of the major causes of nicotine-induced cancer metastasis and DNA damage is nitric oxide formation. Tea prepared using hot water for 5 min showed a protective effect against nitric oxide radicals by scavenging the nitric oxide radicals (Table 1). It has been hypothesized that scavenging of nitric oxide is one of the main mechanisms for the bioactivity of flavonoids.