Seaweed Compounds Show Promise Against Norovirus Infection
Research indicates that certain seaweed compounds may inhibit norovirus infection within the human body. Currently, no approved vaccines or antiviral treatments exist for human norovirus, which is the primary cause of acute gastroenteritis outbreaks globally, resulting in over 685 million infections annually.
Collaborative Study Explores Marine Solutions
A collaborative study by Griffith University and Australian biotechnology company Marinova investigated the ability of compounds from brown and green seaweeds to block norovirus in the early stages of infection.
Dr. Grant Hansman, a senior author from Griffith's Institute for Biomedicine and Glycomics, stated that noroviruses infect individuals by attaching to molecules in the intestine known as histo-blood group antigens (HBGAs).
The researchers tested fucoidan, from brown seaweed, and ulvan, to assess their effectiveness in preventing norovirus virus-like particles from binding to human saliva samples containing HBGAs.
Fucoidan Emerges as a Key Inhibitor
Fucoidan demonstrated the strongest and most consistent blocking activity against two major norovirus strains, GII.4 and GII.17.
It is suggested that fucoidan likely binds to the HBGA binding pocket, creating a physical barrier that hinders the virus's attachment.
A Promising Natural Treatment Option
Associate Professor Thomas Haselhorst, a co-senior author, noted that fucoidan has a history of dietary use and has shown good tolerability in human studies.
The study suggests that fucoidan could be a promising natural treatment for preventing norovirus infection.
Future Research and Norovirus Impact
Further research is now focused on validating how fucoidan can be formulated to maximize its protective effect in the gastrointestinal tract.
Norovirus is highly contagious and leads to gastroenteritis, characterized by symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, watery diarrhea, fever, stomach pains, headache, and muscle aches.
The findings were published in the journal Microbiology Spectrum in a paper titled 'Harnessing marine sulphated polysaccharides to inhibit norovirus: from seaweed to solution'.