| Summary: | Cadmium (Cd), a harmful heavy metal that has no biological purpose, can harm healthy fetal and child development. Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), the most abundant polyphenol in tea, has been shown to increase cell viability under Cd exposure and ameliorate Cd-induced kidney injury in adult male rats. Using the <i>Caenorhabditis elegans</i> (<i>C. elegans</i>) model, we demonstrated that EGCG mitigated Cd-induced body size developmental toxicity through a mechanism that did not involve chelation with EGCG and was not associated with Cd accumulation and efflux. Our research indicated that the beneficial effects of EGCG on Cd-induced body size developmental toxicity were associated with the mitigation of endoplasmic reticulum stress. Furthermore, our observations indicate that EGCG reduced Cd-induced developmental toxicity in <i>C. elegans</i> via the PEK-1/eIF-2α/ATF-4 pathway. Our results provide important evidence for the potential benefits of consuming tea as a detoxification agent.
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