Antiviral activity of Agaricus blazei Murrill ss. Heinem extract against human and bovine herpesviruses in cell culture

Abstract

The aqueous extract of Agaricus blazei Murill ss. Heinem, a basidiomycete native from Brazil, frequently used by popular medicine, mainly in the form of tea, was assessed to its antiviral action against herpes simplex type 1 (HSV-1) and bovine herpes type 1 (BoHV-1) in HEp-2 cell culture. Viral replication inhibition was evaluated by plaque assay and immunofluorescence test. The extract demonstrated virucide action for both viruses, being more effective against HSV-1, inhibiting its infectivity in 78.4 and 73.9% at the concentrations of 50 and 100 µg/mL, respectively moreover, reduction in 47% the number of fluorescent cells was observed for both concentrations. The extract also showed discrete therapeutic activity. These results suggest that A. blazei extract acts mainly in the viral particle, however, the effect during virus replication can not be ruled out.