"Kimchi's Effectiveness Against COVID-19".. Revealed Through Science

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Junho] Is kimchi really effective in preventing infection from the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19)?

The World Kimchi Research Institute, affiliated with the Korea Food Research Institute, announced on the 21st that the research team led by Dr. Kwon Minseong of the Microbial Functionality Research Division is verifying the antiviral efficacy of kimchi against COVID-19. They are conducting research to determine whether kimchi truly has effects in suppressing COVID-19 infection.

Not only the Kimchi Research Institute but also Jeonbuk National University, Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology, and Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology have been involved in the research. The Kimchi Research Institute isolates about 20 candidate antiviral kimchi lactic acid bacteria strains from various types of kimchi to extract immune-activating substances, while other research teams verify whether these have antiviral efficacy against COVID-19.

In the case of Jeonbuk National University, they analyze the broad-spectrum anti-coronavirus efficacy of kimchi lactic acid bacteria using a research cold coronavirus (hCoV-229E-GFP) that expresses fluorescent protein. The Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology conducts the search for antiviral efficacy substances and verifies their effectiveness. The Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology clarifies preclinical efficacy through infected animal model experiments.

Recently, the British newspaper The Sun reported that the research team led by Professor Jean Bousquet, emeritus professor at the University of Montpellier in France, announced that, based on an analysis of correlations between dietary differences by country, Korea had relatively fewer deaths from coronavirus due to a diet mainly consisting of fermented cabbage.

Choi Hakjong, acting director of the Kimchi Research Institute, said, "Most antiviral agents based on natural substances currently rely on overseas technology," adding, "Through this research, we hope to successfully discover candidate antiviral substances from kimchi, a traditional Korean food, thereby not only accumulating unique domestic technology but also scientifically clarifying the antiviral efficacy of kimchi, further enhancing the status of Korea as the origin country of kimchi."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.