Lemon Juice Activity Against Caprine Alphaherpesvirus-1: An In Vitro Study

Caprine herpesvirus 1 (CpHV-1) is responsible for significant economic losses in goat farming. The CpHV-1 genital infection in goats has been used as a homologous animal model for the study of human herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2). This study aimed to investigate the in vitro virucidal and antiviral effect of lemon juice (LJ) and its main component, citric acid (CA), against CpHV-1 on Madin-Darby Bovine Kidney (MDBK) cells. Cytotoxicity was assessed using an XTT assay, while viral titers were determined by the Reed-Muench method and viral DNA was quantified via qPCR. Pure LJ (pH 2.3) and its corresponding CA solution demonstrated potent and rapid virucidal activity, reducing the viral titer by over 5.0 log10 TCID₅₀/50 µL within 1 min. When applied after viral entry, a non-cytotoxic dilution of LJ (pH 4.32) significantly inhibited viral replication, causing a 2.5 log10 TCID₅₀/50 µL reduction in viral titer and a corresponding decrease in viral DNA. The antiviral effects were minimal at a near-neutral pH of 6.67, probably interacting with envelope structures. These results suggest that LJ could be a potential low-cost topical agent or disinfectant for controlling CpHV-1 in goat populations and offer a basis for translational research on human herpesviruses.