LIPI Develops COVID-19 Cure

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) is reportedly developing and conducting clinical tests on animal subjects to develop COVID-19 herbal antiviral drug extracted from Cassia alata and Dendrophthoe sp, which are locally known as 'ketepeng badak' and 'benalu'

"We have conducted tests and the drug is safe for animal test subjects," said LIPI researcher on chemical pharmacy Marissa Angelina, as quoted by Antara on Wednesday, May 13, 2020. 

LIPI has worked together with the University of Indonesia (UI) faculty on microbiology and the Kyoto University to develop COVID-19 cure using plants as main ingredients. 

Based on the team's in silico testing method, they discovered that the leaves contained active compounds that are able to curb the growth of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, and identified its potential for a future cure. The antiviral substances found in the leaves include kaempferol, aloe-emodin, and quercetin. 

LIPI's pre-pandemic research also found that 'benalu' contains quercetin, a substance that can suppress the growth of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19. 

"Based on computational tests and data from overseas studies, quercetin can actively suppress SARS-CoV-2 in silico," said Marissa. 

ANTARA