Inactivation of the Influenza Virus by a Supplemental Fermented Plant Product (Manda Koso)

Manda Koso is a commercial fermented plant product (FPP) made from 53 types of fruits and vegetables that are fermented for more than 3 years. We hypothesized that the FPP can prevent infection by influenza virus and human norovirus. Therefore, we investigated the effects of the FPP on influenza virus and feline calicivirus, a surrogate of human norovirus. We found that 10% FPP inactivated the influenza virus but not the feline calicivirus. Inhibition of the influenza virus was highly concentration-dependent: 1% and 0.3% FPP showed reduced inactivation efficacy. The effects of the FPP on the influenza virus-infected cells were investigated by addition of the FPP to the culture medium after virus infection. No suppressive effect of the FPP on influenza replication in MDCK cells was observed. The results showed that the FPP could inactivate influenza virus by affecting the virus particles.