REVERSE-TRANSCRIPTASE INHIBITION ASSAY AS A SCREENING-TEST FOR EVALUATION OF ANTI-RETRO VIRAL PROPERTIES

We report the standardisation of a simple gel electrophoresis reverse transcriptase (RT) inhibition assay to be used as a screening techniqu e for identifying possible anti-HIV potentials in marine flora and fau na. Moloney murine leukaemia virus (MMLV) RT was used to demonstrate t he conversion/non-conversion of mRNA to cDNA. Ethanolic/methanolic pre paration of 221 marine flora and fauna collected from east and west co asts of India and the coasts of Andaman and Nicobar Islands were teste d. The inhibitory potentials of these extracts were identified by the non-formation of CDNA band due to the inhibition of RT. 30 (13.5%) of the marine extracts (15 fauna and 15 flora) possessed RT inhibition pr operties which could be subjected for further in-depth analysis. The a ssay could be satisfactorily used as a screening technique, and marine biota may be a useful source of anti-reverse transcriptase compounds.