Antiviral activity of the Lippia graveolens (Mexican oregano) essential oil and its main compound carvacrol against human and animal viruses

Abstract

Mexican oregano (Lippia graveolens) is a plant found in Mexico and Central America that is traditionally used as a medicinal herb. In the present study, we investigated the antiviral activity of the essential oil of Mexican oregano and its major component, carvacrol, against different human and animal viruses. The MTT test (3-4,5-dimethythiazol-2yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide) was conducted to determine the selectivity index (SI) of the essential oil, which was equal to 13.1, 7.4, 10.8, 9.7, and 7.2 for acyclovirresistant herpes simplex virus type 1 (ACVR-HHV-1), acyclovir-sensitive HHV-1, human respiratory syncytial virus (HRSV), bovine herpesvirus type 2 (BoHV-2), and bovine viral diarrhoea virus (BVDV), respectively. The human rotavirus (RV) and BoHV-1 and 5 were not inhibited by the essential oil. Carvacrol alone exhibited high antiviral activity against RV with a SI of 33, but it was less efficient than the oil for the other viruses. Thus, Mexican oregano oil and its main component, carvacrol, are able to inhibit different human and animal viruses in vitro. Specifically, the antiviral effects of Mexican oregano oil on ACVR-HHV-1 and HRSV and of carvacrol on RV justify more detailed studies.

Evaluation of Natural Compounds of Plant Origin for Inactivation of Enteric Viruses

“…However, Su and D'Souza (2011), when testing the antiviral activity of grape seed extract (GSE), reported that MNV was more resistant than HAV. Taking together these results and previous studies (Elizaquível et al 2013;Sánchez et al 2015;Gilling et al 2014a, b;Pilau et al 2011), the use of plant extracts as antivirals in food safety should focus on the purified active compounds as they exhibited stronger activity than EO. Nevertheless, complete inactivation of foodborne viral contamination with plant extracts either EOs or active compounds cannot be foreseen since they slightly affect HAV infectivity.…”

Effects of Origanum Syriacum Essential Oil on Blood Parameters of Broilers Reared at High Ambient Heat

“…While the fatty acids in the OS essential oil generally contains polymorphic compounds, such as thymol and carvacrol, compounds, such as γ-terpinene, P-cymene, and thymoquinene, can also be found depending on the growing area (Lukas et al, 2009) . Some studies have reported that essential fatty acids in OS have antioxidant (Luna et al, 2010;Tavarez et al, 2011), anti-microbial (Mitsch et al, 2004;Gürakan et al, 2008), anti-inflammatory (Yoshino et al, 2006), anti-viral (Pilau et al, 2011), anti-tumoral (El-desoukya et al, 2009Al-kalaldeh et al, 2010), anti-ulcer (Afify et al, 2012), anti-fungal (Manohar et al, 2001), and anti-parasitic (Değerli et al, 2012;Remmal et al, 2013) properties, all of which have positive effects on stock performance (Jang et al, 2007;Tekçe & Gül, 2016).…”

β-Cyclodextrins as Encapsulating Agents of Essential Oils

“…Essential oils or their components not only have antibacterial properties [22,23,25,32,33] but also have antiparasitic [34,35], antiviral [36,37], antifungal [38][39][40], and antioxidant properties [32,41,42].…”