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Evaluation of the effects of hydroalcoholic extract of Echinacea purpurea against influenza virus and expression of interleukin-1 (IL-1β) gene in BALB/c mice
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Sepideh Taghiloo   , Maryam Abbasi * , Behzad Hemmati |
| Department of Biology, Faculty of Basic Science, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran. |
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Abstract: |
| Sarhargol is a medicinal plant from the chicory plant family, and all its parts, especially the roots, have antiviral properties. Considering the importance of Sarhargol plant in viral treatment, the aim of the study is to investigate the effects of hydroalcoholic extract of Sarhargol plant against influenza virus and interleukin 1 (IL-1) gene expression in BALB/c mice. Extraction from Sarkhargol plant was done by Soxhlet machine. In order to separate the solvent from the desired extract, the obtained solution was purified by a rotary device. 20 female BALB/c mice aged 6-7 weeks were examined in 4 groups of 5. After a month of treating the groups with different concentrations of extracts, tissue samples were isolated for gene expression studies. IL-1 gene expression in different groups was measured by real-time PCR method. The amount of weight gain in the groups fed with hydroalcoholic extract of Sarkhargol was significantly higher than other groups. The results of Real-time PCR analysis also showed that with increasing the concentration of the extract, the level of IL-1 gene expression decreases significantly. The results of this research showed that the use of sorghum plant extract can be effective against increasing the activity of inflammatory factors, especially interleukins, in the face of viral pathogens such as influenza. However, many studies are necessary to obtain accurate results. |
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| Keywords: Echinacea purpurea, influenza, Interleukin-1, gene expression, hydroalcoholic extract |
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Type of Study: Research |
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