title: (-)-Epigallocatechin-3-gallate inhibits the replication cycle of hepatitis C virus.
abstract: (-)-Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) is the most abundant catechin in green tea. In this study, we found that hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection was significantly suppressed by EGCG in an HCV cell culture (HCVcc) system using a JFH1-GFP chimeric virus, with a 50 % effective concentration (EC(50)) of 17.9 μM. The inhibitory activity of EGCG was confirmed by monitoring HCV RNA and protein expression levels in Huh7.5.1 cells infected with the JFH1 virus. Moreover, we demonstrated that the inhibitory mechanisms of EGCG were attributable to the suppression of both the HCV entry and RNA replication steps, although EGCG had little effect on translation directed by the viral internal ribosome entry site (IRES). Furthermore, HCV could be rapidly eliminated from cell cultures after two and five passages in the presence of 50 and 25 μM EGCG, respectively. These results indicate that EGCG is a potential candidate as a preventive and antiviral drug for HCV infection.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Virology, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, Hubei 430071, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Chao
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Hui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Qiu
authors.forename: Jian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gong
authors.forename: Qing
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Han
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Xiao
authors.forename: Xin-Wen
authors.initials: XW
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Bin-Lian
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: Rong-Ge
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Yang
mesh_terms: D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology*; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000187:drug effects; D002392:Catechin / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000494:pharmacology; D002460:Cell Line; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D015967:Gene Expression Regulation, Viral / Q000502:physiology; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D053586:Virus Internalization / Q000187:drug effects; D014779:Virus Replication / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D000998:Antiviral Agents; D012367:RNA, Viral; D002392:Catechin; C045651:epigallocatechin gallate