{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,20]],"date-time":"2026-03-20T14:01:14Z","timestamp":1774015274072,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":37,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"3","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,20]],"date-time":"2026-03-20T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1773964800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences Innovation Fund for Medical Sciences","award":["2025-I2M-TS-12"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2025-I2M-TS-12"]}]},{"name":"Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences Innovation Fund for Medical Sciences","award":["2021-I2M-1-060"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2021-I2M-1-060"]}]},{"name":"WeiGao Science Foundation of Chinese Society of Blood Transfusion","award":["CSBT-WG-2022-0"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["CSBT-WG-2022-0"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Pathogens"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background: Despite significant improvements in blood safety, the risk of transfusion-transmitted infections persists, particularly from emerging and re-emerging viruses. For red blood cell (RBC) products, this risk is exacerbated by the fact that there is no routine testing for many of these pathogens, and effective, commercially available pathogen inactivation technologies specifically for RBCs are still lacking. This gap in the safety framework means that viruses capable of establishing an asymptomatic viremia\u2014a characteristic of many arboviruses like Zika, dengue, and West Nile virus\u2014present a tangible threat to the blood supply, highlighting the need for broad-spectrum countermeasures. Study Design and Methods: This study aims to investigate the antiviral activity of green tea extract (GTE) and its key catechins, epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) and epicatechin gallate (ECG), against ZIKV in both cellular models and red blood cell (RBC) products. In vitro antiviral activity was assessed using A549 cells treated with GTE (150 \u03bcg\/mL) or purified EGCG\/ECG (20 \u03bcM). Mechanistic studies focused on viral attachment inhibition. Additionally, ZIKV-spiked RBC products were co-incubated with GTE (300 \u03bcg\/mL) for 1 h to evaluate virucidal effects. Erythrocyte integrity was confirmed via hemolysis assays. Results: Co-treatment with GTE or catechins suppressed ZIKV replication by \u22653.64 logs (p &lt; 0.001) in A549 cells. GTE and catechins primarily inhibited viral attachment. In RBCs, GTE reduced viral infectivity by 99.99% (4-log reduction) without compromising erythrocyte membrane integrity or cellular viability. Furthermore, RBCs with added GTE demonstrated a lower hemolysis rate during storage for up to 60 days. Conclusions: GTE exhibits potent virucidal activity against ZIKV in blood matrices, highlighting its potential as a pathogen reduction agent to enhance transfusion safety. Further development of GTE-based additive solutions or technologies is warranted.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/pathogens15030334","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,20]],"date-time":"2026-03-20T11:44:46Z","timestamp":1774007086000},"page":"334","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Green Tea Catechins Significantly Reduce Zika Virus in RBCs Through Viral Inactivation"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"15","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0007-8763-7416","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Xipeng","family":"Yan","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Blood Transfusion, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Chengdu 610052, China"},{"name":"The Joint Laboratory on Transfusion-Transmitted Diseases (TTDs) between Institute of Blood Transfusion, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Nanning Blood Center, Nanning Blood Center, Nanning 530007, China"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7621-5783","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jinlian","family":"Li","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"The Joint Laboratory on Transfusion-Transmitted Diseases (TTDs) between Institute of Blood Transfusion, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Nanning Blood Center, Nanning Blood Center, Nanning 530007, China"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Xiaoqiong","family":"Duan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Blood Transfusion, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Chengdu 610052, China"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Limin","family":"Chen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Blood Transfusion, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Chengdu 610052, China"},{"name":"The Joint Laboratory on Transfusion-Transmitted Diseases (TTDs) between Institute of Blood Transfusion, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Nanning Blood Center, Nanning Blood Center, Nanning 530007, China"},{"name":"The Hospital of Xidian Group, Xi\u2019an 710077, China"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Yujia","family":"Li","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Blood Transfusion, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Chengdu 610052, China"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Chunhui","family":"Yang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Blood Transfusion, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Chengdu 610052, China"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,20]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1854","DOI":"10.1182\/blood-2018-11-833996","article-title":"Prevention of transfusion-transmitted infections","volume":"133","author":"Busch","year":"2019","journal-title":"Blood"},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"131","DOI":"10.1038\/s41579-018-0134-9","article-title":"The evolution of Zika virus from Asia to the Americas","volume":"17","author":"Liu","year":"2019","journal-title":"Nat. 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