Green tea catechins adsorbed on the murine pharyngeal mucosa reduce influenza A virus infection

• Main Authors: Shintaro Onishi, Takuya Mori, Hidetoshi Kanbara, Taichi Habe, Noriyasu Ota, Yuki Kurebayashi, Takashi Suzuki
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier 2020-05-01
• Series: Journal of Functional Foods
• Subjects: Pharyngeal mucosa; Green tea catechins; Green tea extract; Epigallocatechin gallate; Influenza A virus
• Online Access: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1756464620301183
• ISSN: 1756-4646

Green tea consumption reduces influenza incidence in human populations. However, where and how green tea exerts its anti-viral activities remain unclear. Here, we examined the adsorption of green tea catechins on the pharyngeal mucosa at 3–60 min after ingestion of green tea extract (GTE) and the role this adsorption plays in preventing influenza A virus (IAV) infection in BALB/c mice. Green tea catechins were adsorbed on the pharyngeal mucosa for up to 60 min after GTE ingestion. The anti-IAV activity of GTE was dose dependent (p < 0.001). The anti-IAV activity of GTE peaked at 3 min after GTE ingestion and then gradually diminished; this was consistent with the amount of green tea catechins remaining on the pharyngeal mucosa. These results suggest that adsorption of green tea catechins on the pharyngeal mucosa is important for the anti-IAV activity of GTE.