Scientific Evidence for the Herbal Remedies Used in the Treatment of COVID-19

Abstract

The recent outbreak of coronavirus in December 2019, now officially named SARS-CoV-2 caused severe acute respiratory syndrome. The lack of significant targeted therapy options led to treating the pandemic symptomatically through the use of antivirals, anti-inflammatory agents, immunoglobulins, and low molecular weight heparins. Non-replicating viral vector vaccines have been manufactured by some organizations however the cure has still not been discovered.  Herbal remedies have been used to treat a multitude of illnesses over time and have been the foundation for uncovering the cure for some diseases. This review delves into the scientific evidence of herbs such as Curcuma longa, Glycyrrhiza glabra, and Zingiber officinale having a therapeutic effect against SARS-CoV-2 by binding to various crucial sites on the virus rendering it ineffective. Many of these phytocompounds were found to have a distinguished mechanism of action showing anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity as shown in Figures 1 and 2. Some of them have also exhibited anti-inflammatory properties. The following figure illustrates how the natural compounds mentioned in this article act on SARS-CoV-2 during its various stages of life.