Malek Besbes Hlila, Habib Mosbah, Kaouther Majouli et al.146
ABSTRACT
In the present work, the bioassay-guided fractionation strategy
associated with ethnopharmacological information has been used. Thus,
various plants belonging to the Scabiosa genus (Dipsacaceae) are used to
treat skin diseases. In this study, the cytotoxic effect and the antiviral
activity of Scabiosa arenaria Forssk. extracts were investigated against
coxsackievirus B 3 (CVB3) in Vero cells. The cell viability was carried
out using 3-(4, 5-dimetylthiazol- 2 - yl)-2, 5- diphenyltetrazolium bromide
(MTT) assay. The best antiviral activity was shown with the roots ethyl
acetate fraction (EtOAc) (IC 50 = 722.22 ± 0.15 μg/mL and Selectivity
index (SI) = 5.53). Its further fractionation yielded 4 subfractions. The
most potent anti-coxsackievirus B 3 activity was obtained for SR1 and
SR4 subfractions with SI of 6.45 and 5.73, respectively. Chemical
analysis of these subfractions revealed the presence of flavonoids and
phenolic acid, which could be attributed to this biological activity. The
good anti-coxsackievirus B 3 of ethyl acetate roots of S.arenaria support
the traditional use of many species of Scabiosa genus in the treatment of
skin diseases of viral origin.Keywords: scabiosa arenaria, phenolic compounds, anti-coxsackievirus B 3 ,
RP-HPLC
ABBREVIATIONS
DMSO (dimethylsulfoxide)
MTT: 3-(4, 5-dimetylthiazol- 2 - yl)- 2
5 - diphenyltetrazolium bromide
RP-HPLC: Reversed Phase-High-Performance Liquid Chromatography
H 2 SO 4 : Sulfuric acid
RPMI: Roswell Park Memorial Institute medium
SI: selectivity index.1. INTRODUCTION
Infectious skin diseases including those of viral origin are highly prevalent
throughout the developing countries [1]. Febrile rash illness and hand, foot,
and mouth syndrome are virus-induced skin diseases. They are caused by