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Ordonez AA, Bullen CK, Villabona-Rueda AF, Thompson EA, Turner ML, Merino VF, Yan Y, Kim J, Davis SL, Komm O, Powell JD, D'Alessio FR, Yolken RH, Jain SK, Jones-Brando L. Sulforaphane exhibits antiviral activity against pandemic SARS-CoV-2 and seasonal HCoV-OC43 coronaviruses in vitro and in mice. Commun Biol 2022; 5:242. [PMID: 35304580 PMCID: PMC8933402 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-022-03189-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2021] [Accepted: 02/24/2022] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the cause of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), has incited a global health crisis. Currently, there are limited therapeutic options for the prevention and treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infections. We evaluated the antiviral activity of sulforaphane (SFN), the principal biologically active phytochemical derived from glucoraphanin, the naturally occurring precursor present in high concentrations in cruciferous vegetables. SFN inhibited in vitro replication of six strains of SARS-CoV-2, including Delta and Omicron, as well as that of the seasonal coronavirus HCoV-OC43. Further, SFN and remdesivir interacted synergistically to inhibit coronavirus infection in vitro. Prophylactic administration of SFN to K18-hACE2 mice prior to intranasal SARS-CoV-2 infection significantly decreased the viral load in the lungs and upper respiratory tract and reduced lung injury and pulmonary pathology compared to untreated infected mice. SFN treatment diminished immune cell activation in the lungs, including significantly lower recruitment of myeloid cells and a reduction in T cell activation and cytokine production. Our results suggest that SFN should be explored as a potential agent for the prevention or treatment of coronavirus infections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alvaro A Ordonez
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
- Center for Tuberculosis Research, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
| | - C Korin Bullen
- Center for Tuberculosis Research, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Andres F Villabona-Rueda
- Division of Pulmonology, Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Elizabeth A Thompson
- Department of Oncology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Bloomberg-Kimmel Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Mitchell L Turner
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Center for Tuberculosis Research, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Vanessa F Merino
- Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Yu Yan
- Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - John Kim
- Center for Tuberculosis Research, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Stephanie L Davis
- Center for Tuberculosis Research, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Oliver Komm
- Center for Tuberculosis Research, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Jonathan D Powell
- Department of Oncology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Bloomberg-Kimmel Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Franco R D'Alessio
- Division of Pulmonology, Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Robert H Yolken
- Stanley Division of Developmental Neurovirology, Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Sanjay K Jain
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Center for Tuberculosis Research, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Lorraine Jones-Brando
- Stanley Division of Developmental Neurovirology, Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
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