Inhibitory effect of the green tea molecule EGCG against dengue virusinfection

Abstract

AbstractDengue virus (DENV) infection is a major public health problem worldwide; however, specific antiviral drugs against it arenot available. Hence, identifying effective antiviral agents for the prevention of DENV infection is important. In this study,we showed that the reportedly highly biologically active green-tea component epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) inhibiteddengue virus infection regardless of infecting serotype, but no or minimal inhibition was observed with other flaviviruses,including Japanese encephalitis virus, yellow fever virus, and Zika virus. EGCG exerted its antiviral effect mainly at theearly stage of infection, probably by interacting directly with virions to prevent virus infection. Our results suggest thatEGCG specifically targets DENV and might be used as a lead structure to develop an antiviral drug for use against the virus