Antiviral Properties of Cyanobacterium, Spirulina platensis-A Review

Virus means poison and harmful to all forms of life. Viruses are acellular and obligate intracellular parasite cause viral infection in host cell. Viral diseases are observed in all living organisms including plant, animal and human. Carcinogenic viruses and other disease causative viruses including Chickengunya virus Dengue virus, SARS-CoV, HIV, Swine flu, Influenza virus, Herpes simplex virus, Human papilloma virus, oncorna viruses such as HTLV I and HTLV II are most important viruses spread disease worldwide. Some viruses are emerging, infectious, contagious. Prevention of virus transmission is important and is possible some extent by taking some important measures like creating awareness on transmission and pathology. Viruses are spread widely by many factors like environmental factors, contaminated, water, food, infected vector, person to person and to animals. Resistance to the drug by host and virus is becoming one of the major problem in treatment with chemical drugs. To overcome this, one of the alternative ways is identifying biological compounds in the development of antiviral drugs and they are natural products especially from plants and algae. Natural products are effective against many viruses and act as antiviral drugs. Therefore, there is a need to focus on antiviral activities of natural products identified from plants to provide safe, lowest and effective drugs to control viral diseases of human. In the present study reviewed some of the important studies on the antiviral activities of microalgae Spirulina platensis.