Identification of an effective fraction from Ampelopsis Radix with anti-dengue virus activities in vitro and in vivo.

Abstract

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE:

Dengue virus (DENV) infection is a global public health issue without effective therapeutic interventions. Chinese medicine with heat-clearing and detoxifying properties has been frequently used in the treatment of viral infection. Ampelopsis Radix (AR) is a traditional Chinese medicine for clearing heat and detoxification that has been widely used in the prevention and treatment of infectious diseases. However, no studies on the effects of AR against viral infection have been reported, thus far.

AIM OF THE STUDY:

To explore the anti-DENV activities of the fraction (AR-1) obtained from AR both in vitro and in vivo.

MATERIALS AND METHODS:

The chemical composition of AR-1 was identified by liquid chromatography-tandem MS (LC‒MS/MS). The antiviral activities of AR-1 were studied in baby hamster kidney fibroblast BHK-21 cells, ICR suckling mice and induction of interferon α/β (IFN-α/β) and IFN-γ R-/- (AG129) mice.

RESULTS:

Based on LC‒MS/MS analysis, 60 compounds (including flavonoids, phenols, anthraquinones, alkaloids and other types) were tentatively characterized from AR-1. AR-1 inhibited the cytopathic effect, the production of progeny virus and the synthesis of viral RNA and proteins by blocking DENV-2 binding to BHK-21 cells. Moreover, AR-1 significantly attenuated weight loss, decreased clinical scores and prolonged the survival of DENV-infected ICR suckling mice. Critically, the viral load in blood, brain and kidney tissues and the pathological changes in brain were remarkably alleviated after AR-1 treatment. Further study on AG129 mice showed that AR-1 obviously improved the clinical manifestations and survival rate, reduced viremia, attenuated gastric distension and relieved the pathological lesions caused by DENV.

CONCLUSIONS:

In summary, this is the first report that AR-1 exhibits anti-DENV effects both in vitro and in vivo, which suggests that AR-1 may be developed as a therapeutic candidate against DENV infection.

• Authors: Chunyang Tian, Hefei Huang, Yuanru Zheng, Xuemei He, Lijun Yan, Lingzhu Shi, Tangjia Yang, Xi Chen, Jiabin Yang, Zibin Lu, Huihui Cao, Wei Zhao, Zhiran Qin, Jianhai Yu, Qingfa Tang, Xiankun Tong, Junshan Liu, Linzhong Yu
• Journal: Journal of ethnopharmacology (J Ethnopharmacol) Vol. 309 Pg. 116339 (Jun 12 2023) ISSN: 1872-7573 [Electronic] Ireland
• PMID: 36870463 (Publication Type: Journal Article)
• Copyright: Copyright © 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Chemical References

• Amberlite XAD-2 resin
• Antiviral Agents

Topics

• Animals
• Mice
• Ampelopsis
• Chromatography, Liquid
• Mice, Inbred ICR
• Tandem Mass Spectrometry
• Antiviral Agents (pharmacology, therapeutic use)
• Virus Replication