Antiviral activity of Bolivian plant extracts

Ethanolic and aqueous extracts of seven plant species used in the tradition al medicine of Bolivia have been tested for their antiviral activity agains t herpes simplex type I (HSV-1), vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV), and poli ovirus type 1. The aqueous extracts of most of the species investigated sho wed antiviral activity. Two of these plants-namely, Satureja boliviana and Baccharis genistelloides-were active against two different viruses-HSV-1 an d VSV. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.