Sars-Cov-2 Virus May Be Weakened by Chemical Compounds Found in Foods, Research Suggests

It's December, and we all can't wait for Christmas. In the previous years, we drink a cup of hot beverage to ease ourselves from the cold winter's night and have that calming effect while staring out the window, snuggling our pillows. We can still do that this year, taking into account that it is safer inside the walls of our humble homes because aside from Santa Claus that we're waiting to come, COVID-19 is celebrating the Christmas season with us. That is why instead of getting those cookies ready by the fireplace, we always place masks and hand sanitizers near us so that they are easily accessible whenever we want to disinfect our hands.

Sipping that hot drink might help because it can be remembered that the virus stays active in the cold, that is the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reminded everyone about the safety protocols on how to stay safe during winter and Holiday seasons, especially when coronavirus is still active. Despite the two vaccines' approval from Pfizer and Moderna, numerous researches have associated probable medication like mouthwash that "can" induce the virus, although some experts are not convinced. Now, North Carolina State University (NCSU) Plant Biologists discovers that chemical compounds found in green tea, dark chocolate, and muscadine grapes may be able to hinder SARS-CoV-2.

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It is known that SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 have a connection. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), COVID-19 is a rampant disease, but the virus that causes it is SARS-CoV-2; it is better to know the difference. Going back to the study from NCSU, the study author and professor of plant and microbial biology from NCSU, Deyu Xie, said in the release that proteases are important to cells' health and viability viruses. He also added that if the said proteases are repressed, cells will not perform important functions such as replication.

Xie furthers in the release that their team's focus is to discover nutraceuticals found in food or medicinal plant that represses either how the virus attaches itself from human cells or how it spreads in human cells.

Study Methods and results

In the release by the university, the researchers demonstrate how they did their research. They mentioned that they performed both computer simulations showing the main protease in the SARS-CoV-2 reaction when a quantity of plant chemical compound was already known for its robust anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Xie said that the proteases (M^pro) in SARS-CoV-2 are essential for the virus to multiply and assemble itself, and if they were able to deactivate the protease, then the virus will die.

Xie also describes the M^proas a portion like a pocket that will lose its function when filled. He then noted that the Green Tea has five tested chemical compounds that bind different sites in the protease's pocket, which significantly inhibits the protease's function. He also added that Muscadine grapes contain these inhibitory chemicals found in their skin and seeds; and added that the plants utilize these compounds in protecting themselves, making it not surprising that the leaves and skins contain these beneficial compounds. COVID-19 is really a handful, but with possible treatments like this (even though clarification and verification of results are much more needed), it still gives hope to humanity and looks forward to days where everyone can go out freely.

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