The anti-viral effect of Acacia mellifera, Melia azedarach and Prunus Africana , extracts against herpes simplex virus type 1 infection in mice

Aqueous extracts from the stem barks of Prunus africana (Hook.f.) Kalkm, Acacia mellifera (Vahl.) Benth. and Melia azedarach L. were evaluated for in vivo antiviral activity in Balb/C mice following a cutaneous wild type strain 7401H herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) infection. A significant therapeutic effect was observed when the infected mice were orally treated with the extracts of Prunus africana and Acacia mellifera at a dose of 500 mg/kg. A delayed onset of skin lesions, slowed progression of infection and a prolonged mean survival time was expressed as opposed to the untreated infected control (p ≤0.05). Treatment with the Melia azedarach extract at a dose of 500 mg/kg was acutely toxic to mice, however a reasonable antiviral activity was exhibited at a lower dose of 250 mg/kg. No acute toxicity was presented in mice treated with P. africana and A. mellifera at the therapeutic dose. The results suggest the presence of anti-HSV agents in these medicinal plant extracts that can be exploited as possible antivirals. Keywords : Prunus africana, Acacia mellifera, Melia azedarach , HSV-1, antiviral activity, medicinal plants Journal of Tropical Microbiology and Biotechnology Vol. 2(1) 2006: 3-9