Green tea can help prevent hepatitis C infection

A compound of green tea flavonoid epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), appears to prevent the virus hepatitis C into liver cells, according to a study by the Hannover Medical School (Germany). The finding, published in Hepatology , suggest that EGCG may offer a strategy to prevent this virus reinfection after liver transplantation.

The hepatitis C virus can cause chronic hepatitis, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma or primary liver cancer. This is one of the most common causes of chronic liver disease and a primary indication for liver transplantation. It affects 170 million people worldwide , according to World Health Organization (WHO). Previous studies have indicated that about 2 percent of the world population has chronic hepatitis C and up to 20 percent of the population in some countries. Although the standard treatment with interferon and ribavirin and the latest protease inhibitors may reduce infection in some individuals, a substantial number of patients still do not respond to these therapies.

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In patients who received a liver transplant due to complications from hepatitis C virus reinfection of healthy donor remains a significant concern. Are urgently needed antiviral strategies directed against the hepatitis C virus in its early stages to prevent recurrence of infection and improve long-term health of patients.

To address this key issue, Sandra and Eike Steinmann Ciesek of the Hannover Medical School, investigated the effect of the EGCG molecule, a component of green tea in preventing the attack of hepatitis C to liver cells. According Ciesek, "Green tea catechins such as EGCG and its derivatives epigallocatechin (EGC), epicatechin gallate (ECG) and epicatechin (EC), have been shown to exhibit antiviral properties and anti-oncogenes. Our study has explored the potential effect of these flavonoids in the prevention of hepatitis C reinfection after liver transplantation, "he says.

The results show that, unlike derivatives, EGCG inhibits the entry of hepatitis C virus in liver cells . The authors suggest that EGCG prevents the entry of virus into the cell by acting on host cells, since the study found that green tea catechins alter the density of virus particles. Pretreatment of cells with EGCG before inoculation of hepatitis C does not reduce infection. However, its application during inoculation inhibits the rapid spread of this virus. In the end, the researchers showed that EGCG inhibits the viral attack, the initial step in the process of infection with hepatitis C.

According Ciesek, "the green tea antioxidant EGCG inhibits the entry of hepatitis C virus to cells, blocking viral attachment and can offer a new approach to prevent hepatitis C infection, especially reinfection can occur after a liver transplant. "