Evaluation of In Vitro Antiviral Activity of Taraxacum farinosum and Taraxacum mirabile Extracts against Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1 (HSV-1)

Abstract

An increasing drug resistance has been reported against the available antiherpetic drugs. Therefore, there is need for discovery of new antiviral agents in particular from natural sources. Antiviral activity of the crude methanol and aqueous extract obtained the roots and other parts mixture from Taraxacum farinosum and T. mirabile were studied against herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1, strain HF, ATCC-VR-260) by colorimetric XTT test.

First, the maximum non-toxic concentration (MNTC), defined as the concentration that caused a reduction in the number of Vero cells, of acyclovir (ACV) used as a positive control against HSV-1 was determined by a colorimetric XTT assay. After determining MNTC of the extracts and ACV, starting from this designated MNTC, dilutions of the extracts prepared according to Log2 base were evaluated for antiviral activity in in vitro HSV-1 / Vero cells systems. As a result of experiments antiviral activity, the methanol extract of T. mirabile were determined to have a weak anti-HSV-1 activity (in the third day of the experiment, 15.63 µg/mL concentrations of ACV showed 100% protection against HSV-1, while 195.31 µg/mL methanol extract of T. mirabile only showed 7.08% protection). While the other extracts did not showed any anti-HSV-1 activity in MNTC.

Keywords: Taraxacum species, Extracts, Antiviral activity, Herpes simplex virus type 1