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Review
. 2019 Apr 19;24(8):1552.
doi: 10.3390/molecules24081552.

Antiviral Activities of Silymarin and Derivatives

Ching-Hsuan Liu  1   2 , Alagie Jassey  3 , Hsin-Ya Hsu  4 , Liang-Tzung Lin  5   6
Affiliations
Review

Antiviral Activities of Silymarin and Derivatives

Ching-Hsuan Liu et al. Molecules. .

Abstract

Silymarin flavonolignans are well-known agents that typically possess antioxidative, anti-inflammatory, and hepatoprotective functions. Recent studies have also documented the antiviral activities of silymarin and its derivatives against several viruses, including the flaviviruses (hepatitis C virus and dengue virus), togaviruses (Chikungunya virus and Mayaro virus), influenza virus, human immunodeficiency virus, and hepatitis B virus. This review will describe some of the latest preclinical and clinical studies detailing the antiviral profiles of silymarin and its derivatives, and discuss their relevance for antiviral drug development.

Keywords: antiviral; drug development; flavonolignans; silymarin.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Chemical structures of silibinin, the 1:1 mixture of silybin A and silybin B.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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