Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) has emphasized the serious threat to human health posed by emerging coronaviruses. Effective antiviral countermeasures are urgently needed as vaccine development against an emerging coronavirus takes time, even in the best-case scenario. The green tea catechin, epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), has broad spectrum antiviral activity. We demonstrate here that EGCG prevents murine and human coronavirus infection and blocks the entry of lentiviral particles pseudotyped with spike proteins from bat or highly pathogenic coronaviruses. We show that EGCG treatment reduces coronavirus attachment to target cell surfaces. Our results demonstrate the potential for the development of pan-coronavirus attachment inhibitors.
Competing Interest Statement
The authors have declared no competing interest.
