Drogas vegetales y constituyentes químicos potencialmente útiles para el tratamiento de la Covid-19

En los dos últimos años la pandemia producida por el coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 ha afectado a millones de personas y ha provocado una elevada mortalidad. Ante la ausencia de un tratamiento específico para esta enfermedad, varios investigadores de universidades de Nepal y Australia han realizado una revisión para estudiar el potencial interés como antivirales de diferentes drogas vegetales utilizadas tradicionalmente el tratamiento de múltiples patologías comunes.

Los autores concluyen que 93 drogas vegetales podrían ser candidatas para el desarrollo de fármacos antivirales específicos frente al SARS-CoV-2. Destacan los extractos y algunos compuestos aislados de plantas medicinales como Artemisia annua, Agastache rugosa, Astragalus membranaceus, Cassia alata, Ecklonia cava, Gymnema sylvestre, Glycyrrhiza uralensis, Houttuynia cordata, Lindera aggregata, Lycoris radiata, Mollugo cerviana, Polygonum multiflorum, Pyrrosia lingua, Saposhnikoviae divaricate y Tinospora cordifolia, que han mostrado un efecto inhibitorio prometedor contra el coronavirus. También podrían ser posibles candidatos para el desarrollo de fármacos contra la COVID-19 varios constituyentes de plantas como la acacetina, amentoflavona, alicina, blancoxantona, curcumina, daidzeína, diosmina, galato de epigalocatequina, emodina, hesperidina, herbacetina, hirsutenona, iguesterina, jubanina G, kempferol, licorina, pectolinarina, floroeckol, silvestrol, tanshinona I, taxifolina, la rhoifolina, el xantoangelol E o el zingerol, entre otros.

Algunos de los extractos y componentes de estas plantas tienen además prometedores efectos inhibidores contra los virus de la influenza-parainfluenza, el virus respiratorio sincitial, el síndrome respiratorio agudo severo (SARS) y el coronavirus del síndrome respiratorio de Oriente Medio (MERS-CoV).

Referencia: Adhikari B, Marasini BP, Rayamajhee B, Bhattarai BR, Lamichhane G, Khadayat K, et al. Potential roles of medicinal plants for the treatment of viral diseases focusing on COVID-19: A review. Phytother Res. 2021; 35 (3): 1298-1312. doi: 10.1002/ptr.6893.

>> Más información sobre:

• Astrágalo (Astragalus membranaceus)
• Gimnema (Gymnema sylvestre)

• Regaliz (Glycyrrhiza glabra, G. uralensis)

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