ABSTRACT
The increased emotional stress and anxiety in the modern human life are common causes of mental health problems which substantially grown during the COVID-19 pandemic. Timely intake of phytosedatives could mitigate the impact of stressful situations and reduce the risk of psychosomatic diseases. Essential oil-bearing plants belonging to the Lamiaceae Martinov family are valuable sources of bioactive compounds possessing sedative effects. The aim of the study was to evaluate the sedative effects of the infusions obtained from five unofficial Lamiaceae Martinov species. Infusions were daily administered to rats intragastrically in a prophylactic mode. The observations of behavioral reactions were carried out on the 1st, 4th and 7th days of the experiment using "open field" test. The sedative effect of infusions after their single administration to animals on the 1st day of the experiment was not observed. Starting with 4 days of the experiment, a noticeable sedative effect was established for the infusions from Dracocephalum moldavica and Ocimum americanum herbs. The noticeable sedative effects of the Dracocephalum moldavica and Ocimum americanum infusions are regarded as a result of synergistic properties of a lot of their biologically active compounds. Further research would help to reveal the mechanism of their sedative effect. Copyright © 2021, SILAE (Italo-Latin American Society of Ethnomedicine). All rights reserved.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The emergence of COVID-19 in the late of 2019 resulted in the massive screening of drugs, including natural products, to support the current vaccines. Apium and Foeniculum vegetables are members of the Apiaceae family that potentially used to be natural immunosuppressant. AIM: The purpose of this research is to analyze the phylogenetic position between these two plants as well as find out their secondary metabolites potency against COVID-19 main protease (Mpro) and the papain-like protease (PLpro). METHODS: The phylogenetic analysis of Apium and Foeniculum from Indonesia was carried out based on internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region and the bioactive virtual screening assay was completed through AutoDock Vina software. CONCLUSION: Overall, Apium and Foeniculum have close relationships among the members of Apiaceae after maximum likelihood analysis. Furthermore, it also has 70 similar bioactive compounds that some of these potentially inhibit both of COVID-19 proteases.