ANTIHERPETIC ACTION OF METHANOLIC EXTRACT FROM Verbascum thapsus.

ESCOBAR FRANCO MATÍAS; SALAS MARTÍN; SABINI MARÍA CAROLA; ZANON SILVIA MATILDE; TONN CARLOS EUGENIO; GIORDANO OSCAR; SABINI LILIANA INÉS

TAFÍ DEL VALLE, TUCUMÁN, ARGENTINA

Congreso; BIOCELL; 2009

ASOCIACIÓN DE BIOLOGÍA DE TUCUMÁN

ANTIHERPETIC ACTION OF METHANOLIC EXTRACT FROM Verbascum thapsus. Escobar1 F., Salas1 M., Sabini2 C., Zanon1 S., Tonn3 C., Giordano3 O., Sabini1, L. 1: UNRC, 2: UNC, Córdoba; 3: UNSL. lsabini@exa.unrc.edu.ar The availability of a reduced number of antiviral drugs and the appearance of resistant strains by their use during long treatments generates a problematic situation. It is very important in inmunocompromised patients with herpetic infections or with concomitant infection with HIV. This situation carries to the utilization of combined therapies, as well as to an intensive search of new antiherpetic drugs, being the plants compounds a good alternative. Objective: to analyze antiherpetic activity of methanolic extract (ME) prepared from Verbascum thapsus and dilucidate which stage of the viral cycle was inhibited. Aerial parts of V. thapsus from Cordoba province were sequentially extracted with n-hexano, chloroform and methanol. Concentrated ME was evaluated on Vero cells in its cytotoxic and antiviral ability. Toxicity was quantified: MNCC and Cytotoxic Concentration 50% (CC50), by Red Neutral uptake (RN) and MTT salt  reduction. The antiviral activity was evaluated by plaques reduction in different stages of Herpes suis type 1 replication. Results were expressed in (µg/ml); MNCC: 850; CC50 (RN):1100 and CC50 (MTT):1417. ME exerted more than 70 % inhibition before adsorption and/or during viral adsorption and not after the penetration (intracellular events), also it demonstrated virucidal activity. The index of selectivity (IS = CC50/IC50) of EM was higher than 18. Thus, this index suggests that possesses chemical powerful agents whose molecular characterization must be approached. It allows to think about the potential applicability of ME as natural antiherpetic chemotherapic.