Research

Smallpox outbreaks have occurred within the human population for thousands of years, but the natural disease is now considered eradicated after a worldwide vaccination program. The last naturally occurring case occurred in Somalia in 1977. In recent years there has been a heightened concern that variola virus might be used as an agent of bioterrorism. In addition, the related monkeypox virus represents a significant emerging threat to the human population. Though the vaccine is an effective protection against poxvirus infection, side effects and risks associated with the smallpox vaccine are reasonably common and can be quite severe. The increasing threat of orthopoxvirus-related infections highlights the need to discover effective poxvirus countermeasures.

Research conducted by SCNM and Arizona State University Biodesign Institute scientists, including Drs. Jeffrey Langland, Robert Waters, Karen Denzler and Bertram Jacobs, has led to the ‘rediscovery’ and characterization of Sarracenia purpurea as an effective treatment to inhibit poxvirus replication. This work has also been dependent upon the collaborative efforts of Dr. Yvan Rochon (Herbal Vitality, Inc. –Sedona, AZ) and Dr. Leslie Gunatilka (The University of Arizona).

Through dedicated research efforts we have been able to demonstrate that extracts from Sarracenia purpurea 1) inhibit the replication of poxviruses, including vaccinia virus and monkeypox virus, 2) inhibit poxvirus replication at the level of early viral transcription, 3) inhibit poxvirus replication at a dose which does not induced host cell toxicity, and 4) do not inhibit the replication of other viral groups (adenovirus, vesicular stomatitis virus, mouse hepatitis virus, or reovirus). We have also recently demonstrated that many other botanical extracts do not affect poxvirus replication, but all species of carnivorous plants tested (including Drosera, Darlingtonia and Dionaea) do inhibit poxvirus replication.

Based on these results, we have obtained a provisional patent disclosure on the ‘Method and compositions for use of carnivorous plant extracts in the treatment of poxvirus infections’ and are in the process of preparing a manuscript for submission to the journal Nature. It is our hope that this research will aid in the repertoire of treatments available should the bioterrorism threat of smallpox becomes real or if other poxviruses, like monkeypox, further emerge as significant human threats.