In silico-based studies on phytochemicals from native Indian plants as potential inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2

This study aims to analyze the AntiCovid effect of Phytocompounds extracted from Native Indian Plant species by computational methods such as Molecular Docking. Through this study keeping the Indian Heritage alive we characterized the ability of these phytochemicals as inhibiting agents of the Main Protease enzyme of this Virus. The lack of any effective treatment and the reoccurrence of cases despite Vaccination necessitates the quick provision of anti-SARS-CoV-2 drugs. Natural substances are getting a lot of attention for SARS-CoV-2 therapy as they have proven antimicrobial activities and are a key source for numerous antiviral drugs. Despite the fact that this virus has several identified target receptors, Main Protease (Mpro) is crucial for viral replication. In this study, 26 phytochemicals from 10 native Indian plant species were studied. Our docking studies demonstrated that compounds Quercetin, Withaferin A, Sominone, and Nimbin were likely to be more favorable than the natural inhibitor N3, with binding energies of-8.42, -9.21, -9.95, and -8.88 kcal/mol, respectively. These four candidate natural compounds were further examined for their bioavailability scores through ADMET analysis to prove the safety of these compounds as well as their drug likeliness. Through the results it was indicated that these natural phytochemicals have a significant potential of inhibiting the SARS-CoV-2 Mpro enzyme and might be utilized to treat SARS-CoV-2 and manage public health, subject to in vitro validation in the future.

Bioactive Compositions of Cinnamon (Cinnamomum verum J. Presl) Extracts and Their Capacities in Suppressing SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein Binding to ACE2, Inhibiting ACE2, and Scavenging Free Radicals.

Cinnamon (Cinnamomum verum J. Presl) bark and its extracts are popular ingredients added to food and supplement products. It has various health effects, including potentially reducing the risk of coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). In our study, the bioactives in cinnamon water and ethanol extracts were chemically identified, and their potential in suppressing SARS-CoV-2 spike protein-angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) binding, reducing ACE2 availability, and scavenging free radicals was investigated. Twenty-seven and twenty-three compounds were tentatively identified in cinnamon water and ethanol extracts, respectively. Seven compounds, including saccharumoside C, two emodin-glucuronide isomers, two physcion-glucuronide isomers, and two type-A proanthocyanidin hexamers, were first reported in cinnamon. Cinnamon water and ethanol extracts suppressed the binding of SARS-CoV-2 spike protein to ACE2 and inhibited ACE2 activity in a dose-dependent manner. Cinnamon ethanol extract had total phenolic content of 36.67 mg gallic acid equivalents (GAE)/g and free radical scavenging activities against HO• and 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) radical cation (ABTS•+) of 1688.85 and 882.88 µmol Trolox equivalents (TE)/g, which were significantly higher than those of the water extract at 24.12 mg GAE/g and 583.12 and 210.36 µmol TE/g. The free radical scavenging activity against 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical (DPPH•) of cinnamon ethanol extract was lower than that of the water extract. The present study provides new evidence that cinnamon reduces the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 development.

Potential immunomodulatory and antiviral food effect in the context of COVID-19 pandemic

Background: Up to date drug-based treatments for COVID-19 have not been approved. The most effective way to face this public health problem is prevention with adequate nutrition, hygiene, and protection measures. Food has historically been used by people to improve their nutrition and complement the treatment or prevention of diseases. The various bioactive compounds of some foods are known, which in experimental studies demonstrated their antiviral and immunomodulatory action.

Opportunities and challenges of functional foods and nutraceuticals development during COVID-19 pandemic

Functional foods and nutraceuticals demand during the Covid-19 pandemic are increasing tremendously. This is showed that there is a shifting food consumption pattern into healthier food rather than only to satisfy hunger. Functional foods are foods that offer health benefits beyond their nutritional value, whereas nutraceuticals are commodities derived from foods, but are used in the medicinal form of pills, capsules, or liquids that demonstrated physiological benefits. Nutraceutical products consist of isolated bioactive substances such as vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and fatty acids as well as dietary supplements such as probiotics, prebiotics, antioxidants, and enzymes. As the second-largest country with the highest biodiversity, Indonesia has some natural resources that could be developed as functional food or nutraceutical ingredients such as ginger, cinnamon, lemongrass, honey, Moringa oleifera leaves, etc. Indonesian society has indigenous knowledge of the health effect of any plants and spices such as the health effect of "jamu", a functional drink made from several parts of plants. However, the development of functional foods and nutraceuticals in Indonesia has so many challenges concerning regulation. The National Agency for Drug and Food Control of Indonesia did not regulate functional foods and nutraceuticals. However, they have some regulations about processed food with the claim, supplements, natural herbal, and food for medicinal uses. Hence, functional foods and nutraceuticals producers must adjust to the existing regulation. The research and development of functional foods and nutraceuticals consist of several steps namely identification of bioactive compounds, assessment of physiological effect, product formulation and processing, and clinical trial to meet the regulatory demand. The research activities will provide scientific evidence to prove food and nutraceutical functionality. Market demands are also important to obtain an innovative product that meets the consumer's demand. Recent methods to develop functional foods and nutraceutical are "design thinking" methods, a method that focuses problem solving on human rather than on technology or organization. The typical design thinking protocol consists of 3 steps namely observation and synthesis, visualization and rapid prototyping, as well as revising and refining. In the first step, nutraceutical developers must understand the characteristic of targeted consumers. In the second step, models or sketches as well as the early version prototypes need to be created. Gathering feedback on the strengths and weaknesses of the product will lead to the necessary corrections before product commercialization. In the third step, a team from many different backgrounds and specializations can be involved to revise and refine the new product. A Penta helix collaboration between academia, industry, citizen, public authorities, and non-government organization (NGO) can be used as a model of networking in functional foods and nutraceuticals development. The use of "design thinking" methods will minimize the risk of product failure in the market. One of our experiences in functional food development is the exploration of glucomannan from Porang tubers (Amorphophalus oncophylus) as a functional ingredient. Glucomannan, a water-soluble fiber that can be fermented, is extracted from Konjac (Amorphophallus konjac) tuber or root. However, in Indonesia glucomannan can be extracted from Porang tuber that can be found in many areas. In the beginning, we collaborate with the local farmer, NGO, and governments to optimize the production of Porang tubers. After we found the method to extract the glucomannan, we develop several food products namely jelly, noodle, rice analog, etc and analyze the physical, chemical, microbiological, and sensory characteristics. The jelly product containing glucomannan was tested for the clinical trial. We found that this jelly could lower the body weight and body mass index of the overweight and obese subjects as well as maintain the level

Cinnamon and its possible impact on COVID-19: The viewpoint of traditional and conventional medicine.

The COVID-19 global epidemic caused by coronavirus has affected the health and other aspects of life for more than one year. Despite the current pharmacotherapies, there is still no specific treatment, and studies are in progress to find a proper therapy with high efficacy and low side effects. In this way, Traditional Persian Medicine (TPM), due to its holistic view, can provide recommendations for the prevention and treatment of new diseases such as COVID-19. The muco-obstruction of the airway, which occurs in SARS-CoV-2, has similar features in TPM textbooks that can lead us to new treatment approaches. Based on TPM and pharmacological studies, Cinnamomum verum (Darchini)'s potential effective functions can contribute to SARS-CoV-2 infection treatment and has been known to be effective in corona disease in Public beliefs. From the viewpoint of TPM theories, Cinnamon can be effective in SARS-CoV-2 improvement and treatment through its anti-obstructive, diuretic, tonic and antidote effects. In addition, there is pharmacological evidence on anti-viral, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, organ-o-protective and anti-depression effects of Cinnamon that are in line with the therapeutic functions mentioned in TPM.Overall, Cinnamon and its ingredients can be recommended for SARS-CoV2 management due to multi-targeting therapies. This review provides basic information for future studies on this drug's effectiveness in preventing and treating COVID-19 and similar diseases.