Antiviral effect of the egg wax of Amblyomma cajennense (Acari: Ixodidae)

Autor(es)

de Lima-Netto, Solange ^[1] ; Pinheiro, Alessandro ^[1] ; Nakano, Eliana ^[1] ; Zucatelli Mendonca, Rita Maria ^[2] ; Barros-Battesti, Darci Moraes ^[1] ; Mendonca, Ronaldo Zucatelli ^[1]

Afiliação do(s) autor(es)

^[1] Inst Butantan, Parasitol Lab, BR-05503900 Sao Paulo - Brazil

^[2] Inst Butantan, Virol Lab, BR-05503900 Sao Paulo - Brazil

• Tipo de documento: Artigo Científico
• Fonte: Cytotechnology; v. 64, n. 5, p. 601-606, OCT 2012.
• Citações Web of Science: 6

Resumo

The control of viral infections, especially those caused by influenza viruses, is of great interest in Public Health. Bio prospection has shown the presence of active principles in the hemolymph of arthropods, and in the salivary gland of ticks, and some of these are of interest for the development of new pharmacological drugs. Ticks lay their eggs in the environment, and to protect them from desiccation and microbial attack they involve the eggs in a waxy layer produced by an organ known as Gen,'s Organ. In this study, the eggs wax from tick Amblyomma cajennense (Fabricius) was extracted using ice cold phosphate buffer. The antiviral activity was evaluated with picornavirus and influenza virus. In both cases egg wax was able to inhibit virus replication. For influenza virus, an amount as small as 12 mu g/mL of crude egg wax suspension neutralized 128 UHA (hemaglutinant unit) of H1N1 influenza virus. With picornavirus, egg wax led to a 256-fold reduction in virus production by L929 cells. Egg wax was not cytotoxic to VERO, MDCK and L929 cell, being observed that the cell morphology was preserved with concentration as high as 2 mg/mL. In addition no genotoxic effect was observed for Vero cells, suggesting a very interesting potential antiviral activity. (AU)

• Processo FAPESP: 08/57263-5 - Expressão de proteínas de interesse comercial obtida da hemolinfa de Lonomia obliqua em sistema de células de inseto/Baculovirus
• Beneficiário: Ronaldo Zucatelli Mendonca
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Regular