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Anti-herpes simplex virus effects of berberine from Coptidis rhizoma, a major component of a Chinese herbal medicine, Ching-Wei-San

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Abstract

Berberine is an alkaloid extracted from Coptidis rhizome. Among the individual herbal components of a Chinese herb medicine, Ching-Wei-San, Coptidis Rhizoma has the most potent antimicrobial activity. By high-pressure liquid chromatography, the quantitative analysis of berberine from 6.25-mg/mL (w/v) Coptidis rhizome extract or 50.00-mg/mL (w/v) Ching-Wei-San was determined to be 0.26 mg/mL. To explore the potential use of Ching-Wei-San against herpes simplex virus (HSV) infection, the cytotoxicity, anti-HSV-1 and anti-HSV-2 activity in Vero cells were assayed. The selectivity index of berberine was about 1.2–1.5 times higher than that of Coptidis rhizome extract and Ching-Wei-San. Moreover, the antiviral activities correspond to the content of berberine in the aqueous solution. Berberine may interfere with the viral replication cycle after virus penetration and no later than the viral DNA synthesis step, and its activities were not affected by the preparation processes. Berberine, the natural plants that contain this component, including Coptidis rhizome, and Ching-Wei-San have all shown anti-HSV effects.

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Abbreviations

CC50 :

50% cytotoxic concentration

FBS:

Fetal bovine serum

HCMV:

Human cytomegalovirus

HPLC:

High-pressure liquid chromatography

HSV:

Herpes simplex virus

IC50 :

50% inhibitory concentration

MTT:

3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide

PAA:

Phosphonoacetic acid

PFU:

Plaque forming unit

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Acknowledgments

This study was funded by grants from the National Science Council, Taiwan, ROC (NSC99-2320-B-040-004-MY3) and Chung Shan Medical University (CSMU-LMC-097-001).

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan, ROC

    Lengsu William Chin, Long-Yau Lin, Ming-Chih Chou & Chi-Chiang Yang

  2. Emergency Department, Da Chien General Hospital, Miaoli, Taiwan, ROC

    Lengsu William Chin

  3. Department of Internal Medicine, Lee General Hospital, Miaoli, Taiwan, ROC

    Yu-Wen Cheng

  4. Institute of Biotechnology, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan, ROC

    Yu-Wen Cheng

  5. Department of Dentistry, Chung Shang Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan, ROC

    Shih-Shen Lin & Ming-Yung Chou

  6. Department of Applied Chemistry, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan, ROC

    Ya-Yun Lai

  7. School of Medical Laboratory and Biotechnology, Chung Shan Medical University, 110, Section 1, Chien-Kuo North Road, Taichung, 402, Taiwan, ROC

    Chi-Chiang Yang

  8. Department of Clinical Laboratory, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan, ROC

    Chi-Chiang Yang

Authors
  1. Lengsu William Chin
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  2. Yu-Wen Cheng
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Chi-Chiang Yang.

Additional information

L. W. Chin and Y.-W. Cheng contributed equally.

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Chin, L.W., Cheng, YW., Lin, SS. et al. Anti-herpes simplex virus effects of berberine from Coptidis rhizoma, a major component of a Chinese herbal medicine, Ching-Wei-San. Arch Virol 155, 1933–1941 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00705-010-0779-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00705-010-0779-9

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