<i>Tylosema esculentum</i> (Marama) Tuber and Bean Extracts Are Strong Antiviral Agents against Rotavirus Infection

BackgroundHuman rotavirus (HRoV) is the leading cause of severe gastroenteritis in infants and children under the age of five years. No specific antiviral drug is available for HRoV infections and the treatment of viral diarrhea is mainly based on rehydration and zinc treatment. In this study, we explored medicinal plants endemic to Turkey flora as a source of anti-HRoV compunds.MethodsWe performed an antiviral screening on Ballota macrodonta, Salvia cryptantha and Rindera lanata extracts by focus reduction assay. The extract with the highest selectivity index (SI) was selected; its antiviral activity was further confirmed against other HRoV strains and by virus yield reduction assay. The step of viral replicative cycle putatively inhibited was investigated by in vitro assays.ResultsThe methanolic extract of R. lanata (Boraginaceae) showed the most favourable selectivity index. This extract exhibited a dose-dependent inhibitory activity against three different HRoV strains (EC50 values ranging from 5.8 μg/ml to 25.5 μg/ml), but was inactive or barely active against other RNA viruses, namely human rhinovirus and respiratory syncytial virus. The R. lanata extract targets the early steps of HRoV infection, likely by hampering virus penetration into the cells.ConclusionThese results make the R. lanata methanolic extract a promising starting material for a bioguided-fractionation aimed at identifying anti-HRoV compounds. Further work is required to isolate the active principle and assess its clinical potential.

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“…Several recent studies demonstrate that plant extracts are deeply explored for their antiviral potential against HRoV [9–14, 27–29]. …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

In vitro screening for antiviral activity of Turkish plants revealing methanolic extract of Rindera lanata var. lanata active against human rotavirus

Civra

Francese

Sinato

et al. 2017

BMC Complement Altern Med

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“…Seeds are also used to produce milk, oil, and flour, while the tubers, which can grow up to 200 kg in size, are used as sources of carbohydrate, protein, and water [168]. Extracts from this species are commonly used to treat inflammatory disorders, viruses, and skin diseases [169,170].…”

Section: Marama Beanmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Impact of Genetic Changes during Crop Domestication

et al. 2018

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Abstract:Humans have domesticated hundreds of plant and animal species as sources of food, fiber, forage, and tools over the past 12,000 years, with manifold effects on both human society and the genetic structure of the domesticated species. The outcomes of crop domestication were shaped by selection driven by human preferences, cultivation practices, and agricultural environments, as well as other population genetic processes flowing from the ensuing reduction in effective population size. It is obvious that any selection imposes a reduction of diversity, favoring preferred genotypes, such as nonshattering seeds or increased palatability. Furthermore, agricultural practices greatly reduced effective population sizes of crops, allowing genetic drift to alter genotype frequencies. Current advances in molecular technologies, particularly of genome sequencing, provide evidence of human selection acting on numerous loci during and after crop domestication. Population-level molecular analyses also enable us to clarify the demographic histories of the domestication process itself, which, together with expanded archaeological studies, can illuminate the origins of crops. Domesticated plant species are found in 160 taxonomic families. Approximately 2500 species have undergone some degree of domestication, and 250 species are considered to be fully domesticated. The evolutionary trajectory from wild to crop species is a complex process. Archaeological records suggest that there was a period of predomestication cultivation while humans first began the deliberate planting of wild stands that had favorable traits. Later, crops likely diversified as they were grown in new areas, sometimes beyond the climatic niche of their wild relatives. However, the speed and level of human intentionality during domestication remains a topic of active discussion. These processes led to the so-called domestication syndrome, that is, a group of traits that can arise through human preferences for ease of harvest and growth advantages under human propagation. These traits included reduced dispersal ability of seeds and fruits, changes to plant structure, and changes to plant defensive characteristics and palatability. Domestication implies the action of selective sweeps on standing genetic variation, as well as new genetic variation introduced via mutation or introgression. Furthermore, genetic bottlenecks during domestication or during founding events as crops moved away from their centers of origin may have further altered gene pools. To date, a few hundred genes and loci have been identified by classical genetic and association mapping as targets of domestication and postdomestication divergence. However, only a few of these have been characterized, and for even fewer is the role of the wild-type allele in natural populations understood. After domestication, only favorable haplotypes are retained around selected genes, which creates a genetic valley with extremely low genetic diversity. These "selective sweeps" can allow mildly deleterious...

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“…Previous studies investigated the antiviral activity of several plant extracts against rotavirus. Chingwaru et al (2011) reported high in vitro inhibition of rotavirus by Tylosema esculentum (marama) which are used as food and as a traditional medicine against diarrhea in Southern Africa. Also, fourteen Brazilian medicinal plants traditionally used for the treatment of diarrhea were investigated for their activity against rotavirus.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

In Vitro Studies of Some Medicinal Plants Extracts for Antiviral Activity against Rotavirus

AL-Ballawi¹,

Redhwan²,

Ali³

2017

IOSRJPBS

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Tylosema esculentum (Marama) Tuber and Bean Extracts Are Strong Antiviral Agents against Rotavirus Infection

Cited by 25 publications

References 45 publications

In vitro screening for antiviral activity of Turkish plants revealing methanolic extract of Rindera lanata var. lanata active against human rotavirus

In vitro screening for antiviral activity of Turkish plants revealing methanolic extract of Rindera lanata var. lanata active against human rotavirus

The Impact of Genetic Changes during Crop Domestication

In Vitro Studies of Some Medicinal Plants Extracts for Antiviral Activity against Rotavirus

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