Scientists studied the potential of plant compounds to bind to the spike proteins of SARS-CoV-2 and its variants, as well as to the host receptors the virus uses to enter cells. They performed computer simulations and found that artemisinin had the strongest binding affinity with the spike proteins and was stable in simulations. Emodin had the best interactions with the host receptors. Both compounds were non-toxic. These results suggest that these plant compounds could inhibit SARS-CoV-2 infection and warrant further investigation as potential COVID-19 therapies.
Researchers evaluated three solvents of increasing polarity to extract phenolic compounds from the aerial part of L. plant. The methanol extract had significant anti-oxidant and anti-cholinesterase activities, while the dichloromethane extract had the highest cytotoxic activity against cancer cells. GC-MS analysis identified three new compounds, and HPLC chromatograms showed several phenolic compounds. The study suggests that L. plant extracts could be considered as natural supplements for food and pharmaceuticals due to their phenolic compounds.