Abstract
An antiviral agent is urgently needed based on the high probability of the emergence and re-emergence of future viral disease, highlighted by the recent global COVID-19 pandemic. The emergence may be seen in the discovery of the Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, and recently discovered Omicron variants of SARS-CoV-2. The need for strategies besides testing and isolation, social distancing, and vaccine development is clear. One of the strategies includes searching for an antiviral agent that provides effective results without toxicity, which is well-presented by significant results for carrageenan nasal spray in providing efficacy against human coronavirus-infected patients. As the primary producer of sulfated polysaccharides, marine plants, including macro- and microalgae, offer versatility in culture, production, and post-isolation development in obtaining the needed antiviral agent. Therefore, this review will describe an attempt to highlight the search for practical and safe antiviral agents from algal-based sulfated polysaccharides and to unveil their features for future development.
Highlights
In early 2020, the World Health Organization announced COVID-19 as a pandemic caused by the alarming and severe damage of the virus’s spread [1]
Sulfated polysaccharides have attracted much interest due to their potential antiviral activities against various strains through various mechanisms of action. They are reported to be active against herpes simplex virus 1 and 2 (HSV-1 and 2) [8,9], dengue virus 2 (DENV-2) [10], a wide range of human rhinovirus (HRV) strains [11], and the H1N1 influenza virus (PR8) or H3N2 [12], human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) [13], DNA
A further study conducted on fucoidan isolated from Undaria pinnatifida supported the finding related to the HSV-1 and HSV-2 inhibition potential by 2.5 and 2.6 μg/mL IC50, respectively, with the addition of influenza A by 15 μg/mL, where fucoidan was added at the same time as the viral infection
Summary
In early 2020, the World Health Organization announced COVID-19 as a pandemic caused by the alarming and severe damage of the virus’s spread [1]. Polysaccharides embedded with sulfate groups are known for their utilization in the foods, nutraceuticals, and cosmeceuticals industry as antioxidant, anticoagulant, and cholesterol-lowering agents [20,21]. These macromolecules can be obtained from marine algae and several bacteria, but they are not found in terrestrial plants [22]. The former source has attracted much attention since algae have a fast growth rate, produce multiple valuable chemicals, and act as natural CO2 sequesters. This review will highlight the opportunity to further explore the utilization of algalbased sulfated polysaccharides as producers of antiviral agents and will emphasize one of the strategies to overcome the future emergence or re-emergence of pathogens
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