SciELO - Scientific Electronic Library Online

 
vol.66 número2Análisis genotípico de aislamientos de Mycobacterium tuberculosis en La Habana en 2009Expresión de genes de IFN g y TNF a en tejidos de fallecidos por dengue índice de autoresíndice de materiabúsqueda de artículos
Home Pagelista alfabética de revistas  

Servicios Personalizados

Revista

Articulo

Indicadores

  • No hay articulos citadosCitado por SciELO

Links relacionados

  • No hay articulos similaresSimilares en SciELO

Compartir


Revista Cubana de Medicina Tropical

versión impresa ISSN 0375-0760

Resumen

PEREZ-RIVEROL, Amilcar et al. Antiviral activity of an aqueous extract from the red alga Laurencia obtusa against influenza A and B viruses. Rev Cubana Med Trop [online]. 2014, vol.66, n.2, pp.273-285. ISSN 0375-0760.

Introduction: antiviral therapy against infections caused by influenza viruses is based on the use of inhibitors of M2 protein and neuraminidase (NA). However, the emergence of seasonal strains resistant to both drug groups has led to the search for new anti-influenza medications. Extracts from algae may be used as a source of compounds, considering the diversity of metabolites described for these organisms. Objective: evaluate the in vitro antiviral activity of an aqueous extract from the red alga Laurencia obtusa against influenza A (H1N1), A (H3N2) and B viruses. Methods: cytotoxicity was evaluated in MDCK cells by cell viability estimation in the presence of growing concentrations of the extract. The effects over viral replication were quantified by determining hemagglutinin (HA) levels and inhibition of the cytopathic effect (CPE). The selective index (SI) was estimated by SI=CC50/CE50. Results: the aqueous extract of Laurencia obtusa showed in vitro antiviral activity against influenza B, A (H3N2) and A (H1N1) viruses with SI values of 7.73, 11.79 and 12.95, respectively. Conclusions: Laurencia obtusa inhibits the replication of influenza viruses, a fact of great clinical importance. Secondary assays to characterize the biological activity and molecular composition of the extract may lead to the development of novel antiviral compounds. The present paper is the first report on the inhibitory activity of this macroalga species against influenza viruses.

Palabras clave : influenza; antiviral; Laurencia obtusa; natural extracts; algae.

        · resumen en Español     · texto en Español     · Español ( pdf )