Chemical Compositions of Dill (Anethum graveolens L.) Water and Ethanol Extracts and Their Potential in Blocking the SARS-CoV-2 Entry into Cells and Free Radical Scavenging Capacities

Abstract

Dill (Anethum graveolens L.) is a spice belonging to the Apiaceae family and is widely used in various dishes. This study aims to evaluate dill's potential in preventing severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infiltration and alleviating coronavirus disease (COVID-19) symptoms when infected. Thus, chemical compositions, SARS-CoV-2′s spike protein, and angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor interaction along with ACE2 activity inhibition, total phenolic content, and free radical scavenging capacities of dill water and ethanol extracts (WE/EE) were evaluated. As a result, 10 compounds were tentatively identified, with quercetin glucuronide having the highest peak intensity. Dill WE33.3 and EE3.3 (33.3 and 3.3 mg of dry dill equivalents/mL, respectively) showed 66% and 79% SARS-CoV-2′s spike protein and ACE2 receptor interaction inhibition, respectively. In ACE2 inhibition, 5.0 mg/mL WE and EE had 85 and 88% inhibition, respectively, whereas 0.5 mg/mL showed 33 and 11% inhibition, respectively. The Dill WE had a significantly greater total phenolic content (TPC), radical scavenging capacity (RDSC), 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), and 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) diammonium salt (ABTS) values of 15.28 mg GAE/g, 595.21, 90.31, and 36.76 μmol TE/g, respectively, compared to the dill EE (2.63 mg GAE/g, 248.20, 10.38, and 0.85 μmol TE/g, respectively).

Unveiling the Potent Antiviral and Antioxidant Activities of an Aqueous Extract from Caesalpinia mimosoides Lamk: Cheminformatics and Molecular Docking Approaches

“…As mentioned, the ability to inhibit viral infection, especially in the case of water and ethanol extracts, is relatively straightforward for phenolic substances present in those extracts, where hydroxy groups belonging to aromatic ring systems interact with the active regions of viral surface proteins, including NA and HA [ 12 , 13 ]. Likewise, radical scavenging is involved in preventing cellular damage (e.g., oxidative stress) that occurs during viral entry or subsequent infection [ 51 , 52 ]. Thus, measuring antioxidant properties in parallel with defining the phenolic contents of extracts is a prerequisite.…”