Planta Medica, Table of Contents Planta Med 2002; 68(9): 780-783DOI: 10.1055/s-2002-34397 Original Paper Pharmacology © Georg Thieme Verlag Stuttgart · New York Antiviral Activity of Characterized Extracts from Echinacea spp. (Heliantheae: Asteraceae) against Herpes simplex Virus (HSV-I) S. E. Binns1 , J. Hudson2 , S. Merali1 , J. T. Arnason1 1Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada 2Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada Recommend Article Abstract Buy Article Abstract Extracts of 8 taxa of the genus Echinacea were found to have antiviral activity against Herpes simplex (HSV) virus Type I in vitro when exposed to visible and UV-A light. n-Hexane extracts of roots containing alkenes and amides were more active in general than ethyl acetate extracts containing caffeic acids. The most potent inhibitors of HSV were E. pallida var. sanguinea crude (70 % ethanol) inflorescence extract (MIC = 0.026 mg/mL), cichoric acid (MIC = 0.045 mg/mL) and Echinacea purpurea n-hexane root extract (MIC = 0.12 mg/mL). Key words Echinacea - Asteraceae - antiviral - cichoric - amide - alkene - Herpes Full Text References References 1 Bauer R. Echinacea: Biological effects and active principles. Phytomedicines of Europe: Chemistry and Biological Activity. In: Lawson LD, Bauer R, editors ACS symposium series 691. American Chemical Society Washington, D.C; 1998: 140-57 2 Foster S. Echinacea: Nature’s Immune Enhancer. Rochester; Healing Arts Press 1991: 46-55 3 Hart J. The ethnobotany of the northern Cheyenne Indians of Montana. J Ethnopharm. 1981; 4 1-55 4 Kindscher K. Ethnobotany of purple coneflower (Echinacea angustifolia, Asteraceae) and other Echinacea species. Econ Bot. 1989; 43(4) 498-507 5 Moerman D E. Native American Ethnobotany. Portland;; Timber Press Inc 1998: pp. 1-927 6 Shemluck M. Medicinal and other uses of the Compositae by Indians in the United States and Canada. J Ethnopharm. 1982; 5 303-58 7 Wacker A, Hilbig A. Virus inhibition by Echinacea purpurea . Planta Med. 1978; 33 89-102 8 Cheminat A, Zawatzky R, Becker H, Brouillard R. Caffeoyl conjugates from Echinacea species: Structures and biological activity. Phytochemistry. 1988; 27 2787-94 9 Bodinet C, Beuscher N. Antiviral and immunological activity of glycoproteins from Echinacea purpurea Radix. Planta Med. 1991; 57(S2) A33 10 Hudson J, Towers G HN. Phytomedicines as antivirals. Drugs of the Future. 1999; 24(3) 295-320 11 Binns S, Baum B R, Arnason J T. A taxonomic revision of the genus Echinacea (Heliantheae: Asteraceae). Syst Bot,. 2002; 27 (3) 610-32 12 Bergeron C, Livesey J F, Awang D VC, Arnason J T, Rana J, Baum B R, Letchamo W. A quantitative method for identity and quality assurance of Echinacea products on the North American market. Phytochem Anal. 2000; 11 1-9 13 Bauer R, Remiger P. TLC and HPLC analysis of alkamides in Echinacea drugs. Planta Med. 1989; 55 367-71 14 Marles R J, Hudson J B, Graham E A, Soucy-Breau C, Morand P, Compadre R L, Compadre C M, Towers G HN, Arnason J T. Structure-activity studies of photoactivated antiviral and cytotoxic tricyclic thiophenes. Photochem Photobiol. 1992; 56 479-87 15 Hudson J B, Harris L, Teeple A, Towers G HN. The anti-HIV activity of the phytochemical α-terthienyl. Antivir Res. 1993; 20 33-43 16 Hudson J B. Polyacetylenes and thiophenes. Chapter 9. In: Antiviral Compounds from Plants. Boca Raton, Florida; CRC Press 1990: P. 101-117 17 Beloin N. Ecologie chimique et ethnobotanique de Momordica charantia (Cucurbitaceae) au Togo, Afrique de l’Ouest. M.Sc. Thesis, University of Ottawa Canada; 1998: 95 18 Binns S E, Livesey J F, Arnason J T, Baum B R. Phytochemical variation in Echinacea from roots and flowerheads of wild and cultivated populations. J Agric Food Chem,. 2002; 50 3673-87 19 Nusslein B, Kurzmann M, Bauer R, Kreis W. Enzymatic degradation of cichoric acid in Echinacea purpurea preparations. J Nat Prod. 2000; 63 1615-8 20 Robinson J r.WE, Reinecke M E, Abdel-Malek S, Jia Q, Chow S A. Inhibitors of HIV-1 replication that inhibit HIV integrase. Proc Nat Acad Sci USA. 1996; 93 6326-31 21 Facino R M, Carini M, Aldini G, Saibene L, Pietta P, Mauri P. Echinacoside and caffeoyl conjugates protect collagen from free radical-induced degradation: a potential use of Echinacea extracts in the prevention of skin photodamage. Planta Med. 1995; 61 510-4 22 Yamanaka N, Oda O, Nagao S. Prooxidant activity of caffeic acid, dietary non-flavonoid phenolic acid, on Cu2+-induced low density lipoprotein oxidation. FEBS letters. 1997; 405 186-90 23 Yamada J, Tomita Y. Antimutagenic activity of caffeic acid and related compounds. Biosci Biotech Biochem. 1996; 60(2) 328-9 Dr. J. T. Arnason Department of Biology University of Ottawa P.O. Box 450 Station A Ottawa ON K1N 6N5 Canada Email: jarnason@science.uottawa.ca Fax: +1-613-562-5765