Phytochemicals from the Sumac Plant Exhibit Broad-Spectrum Antiviral Properties Against Various Herpes Viruses
Nikhil Prasad Fact checked by:Thailand Medical News Team Nov 14, 2025 1 hour, 58 minutes ago
Medical News: Natural Plant Compounds Offer New Hope Against Persistent Herpes Infections
A research team from the Sadykov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry of the Academy of Sciences of Uzbekistan, the Gamaleya National Research Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology of the Russian Ministry of Health, and the Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology of the Russian Academy of Sciences has uncovered remarkable antiviral powers in natural polyphenols found in sumac and geranium. Their work shows that these plant-based compounds can strongly suppress several major human herpesviruses, suggesting exciting possibilities for new, safer antiviral treatments.
Sumac Polyphenols Show Powerful Effects Against Herpes Viruses
In this
Medical News report, the scientists focused on two key natural substances. The first was Rutan, a pharmaceutical prepared from sumac leaves. The second was geraniin, a potent polyphenol extracted from the geranium plant. These compounds were tested against four important human herpesviruses known to cause long-lasting and often serious health problems: herpes simplex virus type 1, herpes simplex virus type 2, cytomegalovirus, and Epstein–Barr virus. These viruses are widespread globally and are linked to lifelong nerve disorders, eye disease, congenital problems, immune dysfunction, recurrent fever episodes, and even several forms of cancer.
Strong Laboratory Evidence Reveals Impressive Antiviral Activity
Rutan contains multiple polyphenols, but one specific ingredient, known as R5, demonstrated especially strong antiviral effects. Laboratory tests showed that both Rutan and R5 significantly reduced the ability of herpesviruses to infect and spread in human cells. Against cytomegalovirus, Rutan lowered the number of infected cells by almost tenfold and cut the number of infectious viral particles by more than ninety percent at higher concentrations. R5 produced very similar results, confirming it as one of the critical active components.
The study also found that cells treated with Rutan or R5 before exposure to the virus became far more resistant to infection. This indicates that the compounds interfere with early steps of the viral life cycle, including attachment and entry into cells. Both Rutan and R5 also suppressed the activity of Epstein–Barr virus at levels comparable to commonly used antivirals but required smaller amounts of the compound to achieve the effect.
Geraniin, the geranium-derived polyphenol, stood out even more strongly when tested against HSV-1 and HSV-2. It showed some of the highest levels of antiviral activity in the entire study and even outperformed certain second-line antiviral drugs currently used when resistance emerges. These findings suggest that geraniin may eventually become a valuable option for treating infections caused by drug-resistant herpes strains.
A Promising Future for Plant Based Antiviral Treatments
Herpesviruses remain a major global health issue due to their lifelong persistence and increasing resistance to existin
g medications. The discovery that natural plant compounds such as sumac polyphenols and geraniin can block multiple herpesviruses represents a major step forward in antiviral research. Because these compounds act on several stages of viral development, the likelihood of resistance forming is significantly reduced.
With further development, these plant-derived substances may offer a safer, more effective alternative for patients who cannot tolerate existing treatments or who suffer from resistant infections. They may also play an important role in future pandemic preparedness efforts and help reshape how chronic viral diseases are managed worldwide.
The study findings were published in the peer reviewed International Journal of Molecular Sciences.
https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/26/21/10398
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