Possible Effect of Aromatic Plants and Essential Oils against COVID-19: Review of Their Antiviral Activity

Aim: Till now, no specific treatment is available for COVID-19. This work is carried out with the aim of verifying in the literature the antiviral properties of aromatic plants and essential oils that can justify their use against the causative agent of COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2.

Methodology: The literature review was based mainly on the usual databases such as PubMed, PubMed Central., Science Direct, SCIELO, DOAJ, Science alert, Semantic scholar and Google scholar.

Results: A survey of literature reveals that aromatic plants and their essential oils are active against a large number of viruses (Herpes virus-1, Herpes virus-2, HIV, Adeno virus, Hepatite B Virus, Enterovirus 71, JUNV, etc.) and even against SARS-CoV-1 which has 96% of the same genetic background with SARS-CoV-2.

Conclusion: Aromatic plants and their essential oils exhibit high antiviral activities against several types of viruses. This evidence stemming from several experimental studies means that some compounds derived from essential oils could act as inhibitors of COVID-19.

Molecular docking investigations and pharmacoinformatics of some compounds derived from essential oils with SARS-CoV-2 protease are in progress to identify the potential inhibitors of the virus.