PREVENTIVE ROLE OF NIGELLA SATIVA AGAINST COVID?19

Dr. Subha Bose Banerjee*

ABSTRACT

Coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) is caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS CoV-2) and this virus was first originated from Wuhan city of Hubei province of China spreading around the globe. Till date there are no effective approved antiviral agents for these coronavirus strains. Treatment of COVID-19 depend mainly on chloroquine, hydroxychloroquine, lopinavir/ritonavir, ribavirin, remdesivir, favipiravir, umifenovir, interferon-α, interferon-β and others. There is no specific, effective and proven conventional medicine to manage patients affected by COVID-19. So, the herbal medicine can contribute as an alternative measure to manage the patients with COVID-19 as there are many traditional herbs shown antiviral and other medicinal properties. Natural products provide a wealth of biologically active molecules with antiviral activity, and thus may have utility as potential therapeutic agents against coronavirus infections. Among these products Nigella sativa has displayed several antiviral properties.N sativa exhibited several other pharmacological properties including anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and immunostimulatory activities.The antiviral activities of N sativa on different viruses were documented in the literature. Certain natural compounds found in N sativa such as nigellidine, α-hederin, hederagenin, thymohydroquinone, and thymoquinone were potentially active compounds that might inhibit coronavirus. Preclinical evidence is required to determine the activity of N sativa against coronavirus. If proven activity resulted from preclinical investigations, a clinical Phase I trial of N sativa in patients with COVID-19 is suggested to explore its clinical activity.

Keywords: Nigella sativa, COVID-19, Anti-viral, Anti-microbial, Anti- inflammatory, Anti-oxidant.