Kochi, India (CU)_ According to a research that is to be peer-reviewed, the plant and root extract of velvetleaf can reduce the duplication of the Sars-CoV-2 virus to the maximum of 98 percent in cell cultures. The study will be peer -reviewed by three laboratories of the government’s Council for Industrial and Scientific Research. Velvetleaf extract is used in Ayurveda treatment to treat fevers, particularly dengue fever. According to the researchers, it had a comparable response to various antiviral drugs.
The researchers discovered that the whole plant aqueous extract lowered the virus by about 57 percent in cell cultures, while the hydroalcoholic extract, which is a solution created with water and alcohol, lowered the virus by 98 percent. According to the pre-print report posted on BioRxiv, the researchers evaluated the compounds detected in the extract individually against the Sars-CoV-2 virus and found that pareirarine had the maximum inhibition of 80 percent.
Dr. Mitali Mukerji, senior scientist of Genomics and molecular medicine department at CSIR-Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology, detailed the research. He said, “First we used connectivity map – a platform that has information on the pathways of various drug – to see how the plant extract likely works. What we found is that it has similar pathways of action like many antivirals. When we did the lab-based study, we found this to be true”.
Dr. Mitali Mukerji explained that this plant extract is widely used in Ayurveda to treat fever, dengue fever, and hormonal issues. She said, “So, the safety is established. Now, only a randomised clinical trial can tell whether it does help in reducing the severity or duration of the infection in people”.
According to drug specialist CM Gulati, the concept of employing plant extract to heal diseases is not new. He said, “The best examples would be quinine used to treat malaria that is derived from Cinchona trees and digoxin used to treat cardiac ailments derived from digitalis plants. But the current research is in very, very early stages. The scientists have to zero in on an active ingredient, decipher its chemical structure, and then develop a usable medicine.”
