An Insight into COVID-19 and Traditional Herbs: Bangladesh Perspective

Med Chem. 2023;19(4):361-383. doi: 10.2174/1573406418666220829144746.

Abstract

SARS-CoV-2 was first discovered in Wuhan in late 2019 and has since spread over the world, resulting in the present epidemic. Because targeted therapeutics are unavailable, scientists have the opportunity to discover new drugs or vaccines to counter COVID-19, and therefore a number of synthetic bioactive compounds are now being tested in clinical studies. Due to its broad therapeutic spectrum and low adverse effects, medicinal herbs have been used as traditional healing medication in those countries for ages. Due to a lack of synthetic bioactive antiviral medications, pharmaceutical and alternative therapies have been developed using a variety of herbal compositions. Due to the widespread availability of herbal and dietary products worldwide, people frequently use them. Notably, the majority of Bangladeshi people continue to use a variety of natural plants and herbs to treat various types of diseases. This review article discusses how previous research has shown that some herbs in Bangladesh have immunomodulatory and antiviral effects and how their active ingredients have been gathered. Even though FDA-approved medications and vaccines are available for the treatment of COVID-19, the purpose is to encourage the use of herbal medicine as immunomodulators and vaccine adjuvants for the treatment of COVID-19 prevention.

Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; antiviral; herbal treatment; medicinal plants; transmission.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Antiviral Agents / pharmacology
  • Antiviral Agents / therapeutic use
  • Bangladesh / epidemiology
  • COVID-19*
  • Humans
  • Plants, Medicinal*
  • SARS-CoV-2

Substances

  • Antiviral Agents