New York: In a study, researchers have found that certain food items and beverages like green tea, dark chocolate, and muscadine grapes possess chemical compounds that can obstruct the particular enzyme named 'main protease' (Mpro) in SARS-COV-2 which is responsible for Covid-19 virus.
In the Journal Frontiers in Plant Science, researchers studied that 'Mpro' responds with certain chemical compounds found in food items and beverages that have anti-oxidants and anti-inflammatory attributes in abundance through both computer stimulation and lab studies. These chemical compounds act as blockages to the enzyme which helps the virus to double. And eventually, the virus cannot endure if the enzyme is deactivated.
"Mpro has a portion that is like a 'pocket' that was 'filled' by the chemical compounds. When this pocket was filled, the protease lost its important function," said author De-Yu Xie from the North Carolina State University in the US.
Computer stimulation and lab experiments show the same outcome that chemical compounds in green tea, muscadine grapes, dark chocolate, and cocoa powder are able to suppress Mpro to operate.
"Green tea has five tested chemical compounds that bind to different sites in the pocket on Mpro, essentially overwhelming it to inhibit its function," said author De-Yu Xie.
"Muscadine grapes contain these inhibitory chemicals in their skins and seeds. Plants use these compounds to protect themselves, so it is not surprising that plant leaves and skins contain these beneficial compounds," Xie added.
Dark chocolate has the ability to block the coronavirus enzyme because it posses anti-inflammatory properties that can stop the protease to double.