Affiliations
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità (ISS), Rome, Italy. fabio.magurano@iss.it.
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, University of Urbino Carlo Bo, Piazza Rinascimento 6, 61029 Urbino, PU, Italy.
- Istituto per la Ricerca e l'Innovazione Biomedica, CNR, via U. La Malfa 153, 90146 Palermo, Italy.
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità (ISS), Rome, Italy.
- Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, Food Chemistry and Nutraceutical Lab, Alma Mater Studiorum-University of Bologna, 40126 Bologna, Italy.
- Department of Specialistic, Diagnostic and Experimental Medicine (DIMES), University of Bologna, S. Orsola-Malpighi University Hospital, Alma Mater Studiorum-University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
- Department of Biomedicine, Neuroscience and Advanced Diagnostic, University of Palermo, 90128 Palermo, Italy.
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università della Basilicata, Via dell'Ateneo Lucano 10, 85100 Potenza, Italy.
- Dipartimento di Scienze, Università della Basilicata, Via dell'Ateneo Lucano 10, 85100 Potenza, Italy.
PMID: 36495668 PMCID: PMC9721285 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2022.114083
Abstract
Background: COronaVIrus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a newly emerging infectious disease caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome CoronaVirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Despite advancements in vaccine development, there is still an urgent need for new antiviral drugs effective against SARS-CoV-2. This study aimed to investigate the antiviral effect of Paulownia tomentosa Steud extract against SARS-CoV-2 and to evaluate its antioxidant properties.
Methods: Our results showed that P. tomentosa extract can inhibit viral replication by directly interacting with the 3-chymotrypsin-like protease and spike protein. Additionally, the extract does not reduce lung epithelial cell viability and exerts a protective action in cells damaged by tert-butyl hydroperoxide, a toxic agent that increases oxidative stress.
Conclusion: These data suggest that P. tomentosa extract has potential as both an antiviral and cytoprotective agent in COVID-19 treatment.
Keywords: Antioxydant; Antiviral; COVID-19; Paulownia tomentosa Steud extract; Phytocomplex; SARS-CoV-2.
