The present study confirms the strong association between areca nut use and OSF and the increasing use of pan masala.

Background: Siddha Medicine is a valuable therapeutic choice which is classically used for treating viral respiratory infections, this principle of medicine is proven to contain antiviral compounds. Objective: The study is aimed to execute the In Silico computational studies of phytoconstituents of Siddha official formulation Kabasura Kudineer and novel herbal preparation -JACOM which are commonly used in treating viral fever and respiratory infectious diseases and could be affective against the ongoing pandemic novel corona virus disease SARS-CoV-2. Method: Cresset Flare software was used for molecular docking studies against the spike protein SARS-CoV-2 (PDB ID: 6VSB). Further, we also conducted in silico prediction studies on the pharmacokinetics (ADME) properties and the safety profile in order to identify the best drug candidates by using online pkCSM and SwissADME web servers. Results: Totally 37 compounds were screened, of these 9 compounds showed high binding affinity against SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. All the phytoconstituents were free from carcinogenic and tumorigenic properties. Based on these, we proposed the new formulation called as "SNACKeV" Conclusion: Based on further experiments and clinical trials, these formulations could be used for effective treatment of COVID-19.

Background Currently, no vaccines or modern drugs are available for dengue and chikungunya and only symptomatic relief is provided to the patients. Siddha medicine, a traditional form of indigenous medical system uses specific polyherbal formulations for the treatment of such infections with considerable success. One such polyherbal formulation for the treatment of chikungunya and dengue is Nilavembu kudineer (NVK). The mechanistic details of this drug as an antiviral for chikungunya virus (CHIKV) and dengue virus (DENV) is poorly understood. Objectives The current study was undertaken to study the efficacy of NVK as an antiviral formulation against CHIKV and DENV. Materials and methods Cytotoxicity assays (MTT) were performed to determine the role of NVK as an antiviral during chikungunya and dengue infections in the following conditions-i). post infection, ii). during active infections and iii) protective, not allowing virus infection. Results It was observed that NVK provides protection against CHIKV and DENV-2 during active infection as well can help to prevent virus infection in the cells and it mainly depends on the cellular availability of drugs for maximum protection against both the infections. Conclusion Our study establishes that extraction protocols are important to ensure maximum efficacy of NVK along with the time of addition of the drug during CHIKV and DENV infections in the cells. This study provides insights to the possible mode of action of NVK in in vitro condition during CHIKV and DENV infection.