title: Evaluation of antiviral activities of four local Malaysian Phyllanthus species against herpes simplex viruses and possible antiviral target.
abstract: Nucleoside analogues such as acyclovir are effective antiviral drugs against herpes simplex virus infections since its introduction. However, with the emergence of acyclovir-resistant HSV strains particularly in immunocompromised patients, there is a need to develop an alternative antiherpetic drug and plants could be the potential lead. In this study, the antiviral activity of the aqueous extract of four Phyllanthus species were evaluated against herpes simplex virus type-1 (HSV-1) and HSV-2 in Vero cells by quantitative PCR. The protein expressions of untreated and treated infected Vero cells were studied by 2D-gel electrophoresis and Western blot. This is the first study that reported the antiviral activity of P. watsonii. P. urinaria was shown to demonstrate the strongest antiviral activity against HSV-1 and HSV-2, with SI >33.6. Time-of-addition studies suggested that the extract may act against the early infection stage and the replication stage. Protein expression studies indicated that cellular proteins that are involved in maintaining cytoskeletal structure could be potential target for development of antiviral drugs. Preliminary findings indicated that P. urinaria demonstrated potent inhibitory activity against HSV. Hence, further studies such as in vivo evaluation are required for the development of effective antiherpetic drug.
authors: 1. Department of Medical Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Malaysia.
authors: Wee Chee
authors: WC
authors: Tan
authors: Indu Bala
authors: IB
authors: Jaganath
authors: Rishya
authors: R
authors: Manikam
authors: Shamala Devi
authors: SD
authors: Sekaran
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001483:Base Sequence; D015153:Blotting, Western; D002522:Chlorocebus aethiops; D017931:DNA Primers; D004353:Drug Evaluation, Preclinical; D015180:Electrophoresis, Gel, Two-Dimensional; D018259:Herpesvirus 1, Human / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000254:growth & development; D018258:Herpesvirus 2, Human / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000254:growth & development; D008296:Malaysia; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D029803:Phyllanthus / Q000737:chemistry*; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000494:pharmacology*; D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction; D019032:Spectrometry, Mass, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-Ionization; D014709:Vero Cells; D010948:Viral Plaque Assay
chemical_list: D000998:Antiviral Agents; D017931:DNA Primers; D010936:Plant Extracts
keywords: Herpes simplex virus; Phyllanthus; antiviral; cytoskeleton.