| In the 20 years since the world first heard of AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome), which HIV (human immunodeficiency virus ) is known to be the etiologic agent, the epidemic has spread rapidly to most parts of the world and brought about a disaster to human health. More and more governments in the world have realized that it is very important to make every effort to contain the epidemic and tackle the crisis.Current clinical treatment which plays a critical role in the effectiveness of HIV control is highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), a kind of multi-drug combinations of anti-HIV therapieswhich combine at least two kinds of reverse transcriptase inhibitors and protease inhibitors. The introduction of HAART has improved the quality of life of AIDS patients and prevented the development of the disease. However, it is impossible to completely eliminate HIV from infected individuals. On the other hand, the spread of multi-drug resistance, insufficient therapeutic durability and frequent side effects associated with HAART as well as expensive drug price remain the fundamental obstacle for the access of treatment of many AIDS patients. It is important, therefore, to develop more effective, convenient, safe, and well-tolerated antiretroviral reagents.Recently, plant-derived natural products are attracting considerable interest for their possible use in antiretroviral treatment. In the search for plant products as anti-HIV agents, MAP30 (momordica anti-HIV protein of SOkDa) , a plant protein isolated from the seeds of the Momordica charantia (bitter melon), was found to have potent anti-tumor and anti-HIV activity. MAP30 is one of family members of ribosome-inactivating proteins (RIPs), which inactivate eukaryotic ribosomes and widely distribute in plant kingdom. Many studies demonstrate that MAP30 markedly inhibits both irfection and replication of HIV in lymphocytes, monocytes and macrophages. In addition, it shows no adverse effects on normal cells , no pre-existing resistance and cheap cost, making it have the potential to become a significant breakthrough in antiretroviral therapy.At present, studies about MAP30 are in stages of vitroexperiments and primary animal experiments in foreign laboratories, and data from the domestic hasn't been reported up to date. With the combinations of rich plant resource, Chinese medicine information resource and modern medicine technology, our national new anti-HIV drug develop is eager to have a wide and flourish future. In this report, the preparation and the activity of anti-HIV, anti- HSV (herpes simple viruses) and anti-HBV (hepatitis B virus) of MAP30 were studied. This might provide some useful data and idea for the further study of MAP30 and our native new medicine development.Methods:1. Purification of MAP30 The seeds of the Momordica charantia were unshelled and blended, followed by centrifugation, filtration and precipitation with ammonium sulfate. The sample was further purified by ion exchange chromatography and gel permeation chromatography.2. Identification of MAP30 The concentration and absorbance of MAP30 were measured by spectrophotometer. The molecular weight and antigenicity were detected by SDS-PAGE and Western blot.3. DNA-cleaving activity on supercoiled DNA of MAP30 The DNA-cleaving activity was analyzed by electrophoresis in 1% agarose after supercoiled plasmid pUCIS as substrate treated with MAP30 of various concentrations.4. Anti-HIV effects of MAP30 and other three drugs in vitroMT4 was used as the target cell, the inhibitive effects of MAP30, AZT(3'-azido-2',3' -dideoxythymidine), ACV(acyclovir) and IFN-α ( interferon-α ) on HIV-1 P24 expression were investigated by ELISA. The inhibitive effect of these drugs on HIV-1 -induced cytopathiciry was also evaluated.5. Anti-HSV effects of MAP30 and other three drugs in vitro Vero was used as the target cell, the inhibitive effects of MAP30, ACV, IFN-a and AZT on the antigen expression...
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