In Vitro Cytotoxicity and Anti-HIV Activity of Crude Extracts of Croton macrostachyus, Croton megalocarpus and Croton dichogamus

Abstract

Out of five extracts from three <i>Croton</i> species screened for anti-HIV activity using human T-lymphocytic MT-4 cells, the leaf extract of <i>Croton megalocarpus</i> and aerial part extract of <i>Croton dichogamus</i> could be considered as promising extracts as they display high antiviral activity with low toxicity and high selectivity index values. To investigate the active constituents responsible for the anti-HIV activity, chemical identification of the active constituents is now in progress in our laboratory. Since there is no previously reported anti-HIV activity for these plants, there is a great need to isolate the compounds responsible for the noted activity.