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Antiviral activity of a sulphated polysaccharide from the red seaweed Nothogenia fastigiata
E Damonte1, J Neyts, C A Pujol
1Departamento de Quimica Biologica, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Abstract:
The antiviral activity of polysaccharide fractions obtained from water extracts of the red seaweed Nothogenia fastigiata was investigated. Fraction F6, corresponding to a sulphated xylomannan, was found to inhibit efficiently the replication of herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1). Furthermore, F6 selectively inhibited the replication of several other enveloped viruses including herpes simplex virus type 2, human cytomegalovirus (HCMV), respiratory syncytial virus, influenza A and B virus, Junin and Tacaribe virus and simian immunodeficiency virus. F6 was only weakly active against human immunodeficiency virus type 1 and 2. The mode of action of F6 against HSV-1 and HCMV could be ascribed to an inhibitory effect on virus adsorption.