Effect of methanolic-extracted green tea on hepatitis A virus and its usage in clearing the virus from drinking Water
Effect of methanolic-extracted green tea on hepatitis A virus and its usage in clearing the virus from drinking Water
Dina N. Abd-Elshafy
ABSTRACT
Background: Hepatitis A virus (HAV) causes tens of millions of human infection annually
worldwide. It usually spreads by the fecal-oral route and is transmitted from person-to-person
through contaminated food or water. A number of travelers arriving from Egypt were found
infected with HAV upon return to their home countries, for this Egypt Travel made warned
tourists traveling to Egypt to avoid eating under cooked or raw food (especially meat and
eggs) or raw vegetables and drinking tap water.
Aim: To study potential antiviral effect of methanolic extract prepared from green tea on
HAV and explore supplementing drinking water in endemic areas for the virus with such an
extract to control infection.
Methods: Green tea powder was used for methanolic extraction. Cytotoxicity assay was
carried out according to Aquino (1989) to identify non-cyotoxic concentrations of the
prepared extract. Plaque reduction assay was performed to investigate the anti-HAV activity
of the green tea extract according to Tebas (1995), evaluate its effect, to test effect of
applying green tea extract against contaminated drinking water with HAV and study stability
of inhibitory effect of extract on HAV in water.
Results: Green tea extract has a strong anti-HAV effect with direct effect on the viral
particles. Supplementing tap water with the extract with continuous shaking every 15 minutes
for 1 hour caused more reduction in the percentage of HAV plaque counts compared to
allowing the supplemented water to rest for without shaking and the same effect was shown
when water was freezed and tested after one and two weeks indicating stability and
irreversibility of the inhibitory effect of extract on HAV in water.
Conclusion: Methanolic extract of green tea has potential effect on HAV. Based on the
obtained results we strongly recommend supplementing water with small concentration of
green tea extract that does not cause observed change in its color and taste for 1 hour with
persistent shaking before usage in endemic areas for HAV infections.
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January 2018
Vol. 3, Iss. 1, Pages 1-77
