The Brazilian savanna known as “Cerrado” is very rich in medicinal plants that are used by the local population for treatment of several illnesses. The herpesvirus is a serious problem worldwide, and affects both animal and human health. This work aimed to study the antiviral activity of eight extracts from plants natives of “Cerrado” region against human (HSV-1), equine (EqHV-1) and swine herpesviruses (SuHV-1). The results showed that all plant extracts: Banisteriopsis variabilis, Byrsonima intermedia, Campomanesia xanthocarpa, Erythroxilum deciduum, Lacistema hasslerianum, Ocotea pulchella, Stryphodendron adstringens and Xylopia aromatica presented antiviral activity against at least one herpesvirus. Furthermore, it was observed a direct anti-herpes effect of extracts from B. variabilis and B. intermedia in non-toxic concentrations against all herpesviruses. B. intermedia crude aqueous extract showed the most promising results with selective index values of the 41.76 ± 0.04; 4.12 ± 0.1 and 193.97 ± 0.09 respectively against HSV-1, EqHV-1 and SuHV-1. Due to this, B. intermedia extract was also analyzed by HPLC/MS allowing for the identification of gallic acid and quercetin as main compounds.

Keywords: Brazilian savanna, Cerrado, Byrsonima intermedia, antiviral, herpesvirus, gallic acid, quercetin.