Medicinal plant-derived compounds as potential phytotherapy forCOVID-19: Future perspectives

Abstract

Currently, the human being faces a contagious virus called SARS-CoV-2 with a high transmission ability, infection, and a relatively high mortality rate, especially for the elderly. All research interest is directed to finding a drug or vaccine to save millions of people's lives; some have succeeded and applied now in some countries. Medicinal plants represent a green treasure that renders plentiful primary and secondary metabolites characterized by potent biological activities. Interestingly, the secondary metabolites, alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, and terpenoids, own a broad antiviral history. The plant antiviral capabilities may be due to inhibition of viral attachment to/penetration of the host cell; inhibition of the virus replication; suppressing RNA replication; downregulation of viral proteins translation; interfering with virus non-structural/structural protein; downregulation of virus-induced pro-inflammatory/inflammatory signaling pathways in the host cell, and antioxidant activity thus abating the virus-induced oxidative stress effect. Presently, as we are trapped with a surly virus, there are attempts to exploit the power of nature. Therefore, this review's main objective is to refer to some medicinal plants or their derivatives that limit the virus's virulence or alleviate the symptoms associated with this virus.

Health‐promoting foods and food crops ofWest‐Africaorigin: The bioactive compounds and immunomodulating potential

“…Allicin's mode of action is unknown; nevertheless, it is thought to penetrate through the cells (phospholipid membranes) to prevent viral replication. Garlic extracts have been shown to suppress the influenza virus reproduction in vitro owing to the action of allicin, which prevents the viral RNA polymerase by reacting with the thiol functional groups of RNA polymerases (Salama et al, 2021). In the case of viral infections, allicin can influence the immune system (Donma & Donma, 2020).…”

Ethnomedicinal uses, phytochemistry, and pharmacology of the genus Sarcophyte: a review

“…The vast therapeutic potential of medicinal plants has attracted immense research interest from the scientific community to unearth alternative effective lead compounds for drug development, especially against devastating diseases ( Abdalla and Mühling, 2019 ; Swamy, 2020 ; Salama et al, 2021 ). It is now well recognized that the pharmacological effects of medicinal plants are mediated by various bioactive secondary metabolites ( Swamy, 2020 ).…”