Citric acid blocks noroviruses

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Abdominal pain, acute diarrhea and vomiting - these symptoms are often caused by noroviruses. The gastrointestinal germs are highly contagious. They spread rapidly, especially where people live in confined spaces - in hospitals, schools, nursing homes or on cruise ships. But you can fight the culprits with a natural remedy: citric acid.

Some time ago it was observed that fruit extracts from lemons, oranges or pomegranates can alleviate gastrointestinal infections. Now scientists around Dr. Grant Hansman from the German Cancer Research Center in Heidelberg found out why.

Blocked contact point

Since noroviruses cannot easily reproduce in the laboratory, the researchers created empty virus envelopes from proteins. These had the same surface structure as the real viruses. When the researchers added citrate - the salt of citric acid - it adhered to the protein capsules. With the help of an X-ray structure analysis, the researchers were able to observe that citrate blocked precisely the point of contact through which the real viruses interact with body cells. In this way, it appears that the salt can weaken the ability of viruses to infect human cells.

And the citrus salt had another effect: the connection with citrate made the viruses more vulnerable to antibodies. These proteins are part of the immune system. They mark the pathogens so that they can be recognized by human immune cells and rendered harmless.

Natural disinfectant

"You could, for example, disinfect your hands with the juice of a single lemon," say the experts. That would be extremely helpful as the viruses are transmitted from one person to another, especially through the hands. Lemon as a natural disinfectant can also be used to safely and easily disinfect contaminated food.

It is still unclear whether lemon juice can alleviate gastrointestinal complaints if an infection has already occurred. The virologists want to research this in the near future.

The weak are at risk

People with noroviruses often suffer greatly from the effects of the infection: nausea, gushing vomiting, severe diarrhea, weakness. In most cases, symptoms go away on their own after one to three days. Very few patients require hospital treatment. For small children, the elderly or people with poor immunity, however, the high level of fluid loss caused by a gastrointestinal infection can be dangerous.

In developing countries, diarrhea is one of the main reasons for high child mortality rates. A simple antidote, like lemon, could prove beneficial. There is currently no vaccination against noroviruses. (vv)

Source: Anna D. Koromyslova, Peter White, and Grant S. Hansman: Citrate alters norovirus particle morphology. Virology 2015, DOI: 10.1016 / j.virol.2015.07.009

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