Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a human disease caused by SARS-CoV2 becomes a serious health threat after infected more than 6 million people globally. The virus enters the host cell through an S protein on its surface and begins its life cycle with the help of a key protein, MPro. On the other hand, several bioactive from Ginger have been reported for their antiviral properties, but few studies related to COVID-19. This study aims to pursue the potential of a few bioactive compounds from Ginger as anti-SARS-CoV 2 from their interaction to spike and Mpro protein. Gingerenone A, gingerol, geraniol, shogaol, zingiberene, zingiberenol, and zingerone were used as ligand to be docked with S protein and MPro. Drug-likeness properties also evaluated using SwissADME. Gingerenone A constantly gave the lowest binding energy compared to others both with S or MPro. However, gingerol, geraniol, shogaol, zingiberene, zingiberenol, and zingerone could interact with key residues responsible for MPro catalytic domain, while geraniol, shogaol, zingiberene, zingiberenol, and zingerone could interfere S-ACE2 binding shape and increase its binding energy. The drug-likeness analysis also revealed that all of the analyzed compounds have no violation of Lipinski's Rule of 5. In conclusion, gingerol, geraniol, shogaol, zingiberene, zingiberenol, and zingerone from Ginger have good potential as antiviral agents with good oral bioavailability and flexibility.

Background: The standardization and mechanism of action of Caesalpinia sappan as an anticancer agent are still lacking. This study aimed to understand the mechanism of action of  C,sappan extract as an anticancer agent. Methods: This study was conducted using the A549 lung cancer cell line to understand the mechanism of action of C. sappan extract as an anticancer agent. The cytotoxicity activity, cell cycle progression, apoptosis, protein-related apoptosis (i.e., BCL-2and BAX protein) assays, and RNA sequencing were performed level were measured. Moreover, the antioxidant activity, total flavonoids, and phenolics of C.sappan were also assessed. Results: C.sappan has strong antioxidant activity (22.14 ± 0.93 ppm) total flavonoid content of (529.3 ± 4.56 mgQE/g), and phenolics content of (923.37 ± 5 mgGAE/g). The C.sappan ethanol extract inhibited cancer cell growth and arrested at G0/G1 phase of cell cycle, inducing apoptosis by increasing BAX/BCL-2 protein ratio in A549 lung cancer cell line. Furthermore, results from RNA sequencing analysis showed that C.sappan ethanol extract caused downregulation of genes acting on mitochondrial function including adenosine triphosphate (ATP) production and respiration. Conclusions: This study demonstrated that C.sappan has the ability to inhibit cancer cell growth by inducing apoptosis and mitochondrial dysfunction in A549 cells.

Background: The standardization and mechanism of action of Caesalpinia sappan as an anticancer agent are still lacking. This study aimed to understand the mechanism of action of  C,sappan extract as an anticancer agent. Methods: This study was conducted using the A549 lung cancer cell line to understand the mechanism of action of C. sappan extract as an anticancer agent. The cytotoxicity activity, cell cycle progression, apoptosis, protein-related apoptosis (i.e., BCL-2and BAX protein) assays, and RNA sequencing were performed level were measured. Moreover, the antioxidant activity, total flavonoids, and phenolics of C.sappan were also assessed. Results: C.sappan has strong antioxidant activity (22.14 ± 0.93 ppm) total flavonoid content of (529.3 ± 4.56 mgQE/g), and phenolics content of (923.37 ± 5 mgGAE/g). The C.sappan ethanol extract inhibited cancer cell growth and arrested at G0/G1 phase of cell cycle, inducing apoptosis by increasing BAX/BCL-2 protein ratio in A549 lung cancer cell line. Furthermore, results from RNA sequencing analysis showed that C.sappan ethanol extract caused downregulation of genes acting on mitochondrial function including adenosine triphosphate (ATP) production and respiration. Conclusions: This study demonstrated that C.sappan has the ability to inhibit cancer cell growth by inducing apoptosis and mitochondrial dysfunction in A549 cells.