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. 2009 Oct 13:1:RRN1052.
doi: 10.1371/currents.rrn1052.

Green tea catechins inhibit the endonuclease activity of influenza A virus RNA polymerase

Takashi Kuzuhara  1 , Yuma Iwai, Hironobu Takahashi, Dai Hatakeyama, Noriko Echigo
Affiliations

Green tea catechins inhibit the endonuclease activity of influenza A virus RNA polymerase

Takashi Kuzuhara et al. PLoS Curr. .

Abstract

The influenza A RNA polymerase possesses endonuclease activity to digest the host mRNA. Thus this endonuclease domain can be a target of anti-influenza A virus drug. Here we report that green tea catechins inhibit this viral endonuclease activity and that their galloyl group is important for their function. Docking simulations revealed that catechins with galloyl group fit well into the active pocket of the endonuclease domain to enable stable binding. Our results provide useful data that make it possible to refine and optimize catechin-based drug design more readily for stability.

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