Researchers from Loyola College have found that herbal concoction Kabasura Kudineer, which has extracts from 15 medicinal plants, is vital in the prevention of COVID-19 and they have proved through a docking study that it can be used either to block the host cell receptor or to inactivate 3CLpro, the protease that controls the replication of the virus.
Dr Savariar Vincent, research supervisor and former Dean of Research at Loyola College and research scholar Dr Manoj Dhanraj teamed up with Dr Muthupandian Saravanan from Mekelle University in Ethiopia and Dr Selvaraj Arokiyaraj from Sejong University, South Korea for the research. Their paper was published in Frontiers Molecular Bioscience, a reputed journal in the field.
Another paper published in Journal of Ayurveda and Integrative Medicine stated that Kabasura Kudineer could be used for effective treatment of COVID-19 but the study only analysed 37 compounds while the Loyola College study worked on 145, Dr Vincent told Edex. "We analysed 145 compounds and 15 of them are extremely powerful and if we were to create medicine with it, it could prove to be a powerful medication against COVID-19. We have also used a different software for the study. Our paper has also been published in a Q1 journal which ensures worldwide reach," he added.
Tamil Nadu's recovery rate is quite high at 97 per cent and one of the reasons is that people here have been consuming Kabasura Kudineer, said Dr Vincent. "Even at times when antibiotics don't work, Kabasura Kudineer is shown to always work," he said. "We did a docking study using the gene structure of COVID and the various medicinal plants that are in Kabasura Kudineer. We have only been saying that it is a preventive measure. If we keep drinking it on a regular basis, then it will prevent COVID from spreading in the body. It is very effective when consumed for 14 days at a time," he added.
Kabasura Kudineer, an official Siddha Formulation, comprises of 15 medicinal plants — Adhatoda vasica, Andrographis paniculata, Anacuclus pyrethrum, Coleus ambonicus Cypreus rotundus, Clerodendrum serratum, Hyfrophila auriculata, Saussurea lappa, Sida acuta, Syzgium aromaticum, Terminalia chebula, Tinospora cordifolia, Tragia involuerta, Zingiber officinale and Piper longum. "When we studied those 145 compounds in it, we found that all of them had the power to bind with the Coronavirus and stop it from propagating. It also ensures that the virus doesn't affect the receptors in the cells," added the professor. "Siddha, Ayurveda and Unani medicine should be brought into the mainstream and its power harnessed along with mainstream medicine. We need to do a lot more research into traditional medicine into it. Ministry of AYUSH has recommended it all across India and that has contributed to keeping the infection rate low. There are 29 Siddha COVID centres in Tamil Nadu," he said.
The researchers also said that this study is important because there was no scientific validation for Kabasura Kudineer before this. "Even Nilavembu Kudineer is very potent against dengue but there have been no scientific validations against it. That is why we decided to do this study. We have shared the findings with ICMR and they have acknowledged it. We will be submitting it to the TN government and the Siddha College soon," he said.
