Authored by , Izabel Christina Nunes de Palmer Paixao*
Abstract
The marine macroalgae Plocamium brasiliense and P. cartilagineum are species characterized by the production of halogenated metabolites. For the present study, algae were collected from the coast of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and the Cape Verde Archipelago, in the African continent. The raw extracts of the algae were prepared in different solvents exhaustively and fractionated for later isolation and structural elucidation of the major substances to compare the chemical profile of the two species of red algae. The hydroalcoholic extracts of both species showed antiviral activity against the HIV-1 virus and were the least cytotoxic. The dichloromethane extract of the P.brasiliense macroalgae had the lowest antiviral effect among the others tested. Virucidal activity, however, was not observed. Based on NMR, IR and literature data, it was found that the antiviral result was attributed to the sulfated polysaccharides in the red macroalgae. Both macroalgae show potential to be exploited by marine biotechnology, based on the results found in this work.
Keywords:HIV-1; Seaweed; P. cartilagineum; Halogenated monoterpenes; Allelopathy
Introduction
The human immunodeficiency virus type-1 (HIV-1) is a Lentivirus that infects CD4+ T lymphocytes, monocyte/ macrophages and dendritic cells, using the CD4 molecule and the chemokine receptors CCR5 or CXCR4 to enter the target cells [1]. HIV-1 is the etiological agent of the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) and has become a serious threat to global public health in the last decades [2-5].
The inhibition of HIV-1 life cycle constitutes one of the major purposes of the antiretroviral therapy (HAART). Several steps of the viral growth cycle have been studied as potential target for drugs design. Although combination antiretroviral therapy led to a major reduction in HIV-related mortality and morbidity, HIV still cannot be cured. Furthermore, the use of these drugs has been limited by the lack of patient’s compliance to the treatment due to side effects and toxicity of drugs, besides rapid emergence of resistant virus strains to the currently approved AIDS treatments [6-8]. For this reason, the search for new antiviral compounds is crucial for the fight against AIDS. Products derived from natural sources, such as bacteria, fungi, plants and marine flora and fauna have displayed several biological activities [9]. Specifically, marine algae represent one of the richest sources of bioactive compounds, and algae-derived products are increasingly used in medical and biochemical research [10].
The genus Plocamium J.V. Lamouroux is characteristic of a cold temperate climate, with a few species, such as P. hamatum J. Agardh and P. brasiliense (Greville) Howe & Taylor, occurring in tropical areas. 107 species have been described for the genus, of which only 44 are recognized [3]. Today data are found in the literature on metabolites isolated from marine macroalgae, with definite biological actions, such as the following examples, anti-inflammatory [4,5], antiviral [6], antileishmaniasis [7], antioxidants [8], allelopathic [9], against snake venom [10, 11].
In the present study, the inhibitory effects of different organic extracts (n-Hexane (HE); Dichloromethane (DC); Ethyl acetate (EA) and Hydroalcoholic (HA)) obtained from P. brasiliense and P. cartilagineum macroalgae were presented with potential sources of antiviral substances against the HIV-1 virus.
To read more about this article...Open access Journal of Biomedical Engineering & Biotechnology
Please follow the URL to access more information about this article
To know more about our Journals....Iris Publishers
No comments:
Post a Comment