Something very old but also new related to fighting the COVID 19 family of viruses (a popular remedy received from an Yemenite Jewish woman) so I researched and found it interesting lnkd.in
Molecular Basis of the Therapeutically Potential of Clove (Syzygium aromaticum L.) & Clues to Its Anti-COVID-19 Utility
The current CoronaVIrus Disease pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 infection is enormously affecting the worldwide health and economy. In the wait for an effective global immunization, the development of a specific therapeutic protocol to treat COVID-19 patients is clearly necessary as a short-term solution of the problem. Drug repurposing and herbal medicine represent two of the most explored strategies for an anti-COVID-19 drug discovery.
Clove (Syzygium aromaticum L.) is a well-known culinary spice that has been used for centuries in folk medicine in many disorders. Interestingly, traditional medicines have used clove since ancient times to treat respiratory ailments, whilst clove ingredients show antiviral and anti-inflammatory properties. Other interesting features are the clove antithrombotic, immunostimulatory, and antibacterial effects. Thus, in this review, we discuss the potential role of clove in the frame of anti-COVID-19 therapy, focusing on the antiviral, anti-inflammatory, and antithrombotic effects of clove and its molecular constituents described in the scientific literature.
Syzygium aromaticum L., also known as Eugenia caryophyllata L., is an evergreen tree with sanguine flowers belonging to the family Myrtaceae that grows in tropical climates and has been widely used in Ayurveda and Chinese traditional medicines for over 2000 years. Arabic traders brought it to the Western world in the fourth century A.D., and in medieval Europe, it became very popular as a medicinal spice.
Indigenous to the Moluccas, this tree is cultivated in several countries of Asia and Africa, including India, Indonesia, Madagascar, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, and Zanzibar. The dried flower bud of this plant is indicated by the English name “clove”, derived from the Latin word “clavus” (nail), as the shape resembles that of a small-sized nail. Cloves are currently used in three different forms, as whole dried buds (commonly referred to as “cloves”), ground spice, and essential oil. Though all forms share similar biomedically-relevant properties, they differ in the degree of potency, with the oil showing the highest potency and, thus, often being diluted with almond oil. Whole cloves, containing a good amount of oil in their interiors, are still endowed with a medium potency, whilst ground cloves are the least potent form, as, in this form, the spice generally loses most of the essential oil.
Cloves have long been used in both traditional medicine and for culinary purposes & serve to produce an essential oil known since ancient times in food flavorings, traditional medicine, and perfume production.
Antiviral Properties of Clove Phytochemicals
Eugenol (4-allyl-2-methoxyphenol; Figure 2), being the major constituent of cloves, was investigated for its antiviral activity by several research groups. The above-mentioned Tragoolpua and Jatisatienr [101] used pure eugenol as the reference compound in their anti-HSV studies and found that it exerted a higher antiviral activity than the ethanol extracts of whole clove buds. Similar findings were obtained by Benencia and Courreges, who reported the eugenol inhibition of HSV-1 and HSV-2 replication with inhibitory concentration 50% (IC50) values of 25.6 µg/mL and 16.2 µg/mL, respectively. In the same study, eugenol was virucidal, whilst no compound-associated cytotoxicity was revealed at the concentrations tested. Eugenol also showed antiviral activity against the influenza A virus (IAV), being able to inhibit IAV replication. Finally, it was also found active as an inhibitor of the Ebola Virus in vitro.
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