Plants and plant-derived preparations as co-treatments for COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease COVID AntiInflammatory CD4 Chemokines Coronavirus Cytokines medicinalplants plantextracts therapeuticplants traditionalmedicine LiebertPub
Study: Therapeutic Plants with Immunoregulatory Activity and Their Applications: A Scientific Vision of Traditional Medicine in Times of COVID-19. Image Credit: cfsmady / Shutterstock
The complex SARS-CoV-2 pathogenesis has challenged the development of effective therapeutic drugs. To date, COVID-19 is regarded as a multi-medication treatment disease. Plant-derived extracts could serve as an alternative strategy to prevent and cure viral infections and immune-related diseases. Plant-derived formulations possess many properties, including immune-regulating activity.
In this review, immune-regulating activity based on biochemical and biochemical perspectives of plants and plant-derived formulations was assessed for bacterial and viral infection treatment. Plant species, such as Taraxacum officinale, Aloe vera, Carica papaya, Salvia rosmarinus, Allium sativum, Verbascum sp, Plantago sp, and Echinacea sp., were used to determine the underlying physiological mechanism associated with the immune-regulating activity.
A. vera extract can upregulate and downregulate the majority of cytokines. Hence, A. vera-based formulations are associated with immunoregulative function. In vivo studies using rats and mice models and in vitro experiments revealed that immunoregulative functions associated with A. vera were due to the presence of high concentrations of phytoconstituents, such as polysaccharides and glycoproteins.