According to a new study, the tannic acid present in wine would allow the Covid-19 virus to infect cells in the human body.
While a study dating from 2020 and announcing that the tannic acid present in wine was used to prevent the Covid-19 virus to infect our cells was quickly challenged, a new study published in the newspaper International journal of molecular science has just revived the debate on this subject. According to Canadian researchers, this polyphenol would indeed prevent the virus from entering and infecting our cells, but also from replicating. This means that the tannic acid would block the infection, but by the wine itself.
Tannic acid to block Covid-19 infection
Conducted by researchers from the National Institute for Scientific Research (INRS), the University of Montreal, McGill University and the University of Quebec in Montreal, this new study has just shown that the tannic acid allowed to block the protease TMPRSS2 and the viral protease 3-chymotrypsin like protease, the first being necessary to enter our cells and the second to replicate.
In addition to this, they discovered that tannic acid binds to the RBD region, an area in the Spike protein that recognizes and attaches to ACE2 receptors in human cells. Because of this, it would prevent this region of the RBD from attaching to cells in the human body, which in itself would prevent infection.
Charles Ramassamy, expert in antioxidants at the Canadian National Institute for Scientific Research (INRS) and co-author of the study, came to clarify Science and Future : « We have found that tannic acid can act to prevent infection, but also to inhibit it once it has started, by blocking proteases. So this molecule could be used preventively and also as an antiviral, after infection. But all this remains to be confirmed “. However, he points out that the results mainly concern the Alpha variant, “ which was the majority variant at the time of the study ».
As a reminder, tannic acid is in particular present in red wine or tea. However, the quantities present there are much lower than during the study. Charles Ramassamy thus underlines: “ The quantities of tannic acid contained in the wine are much too low to have this protective effect, you would have to drink ten bottles of red a day to reach the right concentration! ».
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