BACKGROUND: Allium sativum L., or garlic, is one of the most studied plants worldwide within the field of traditional medicine. Current interests lie in the potential use of garlic as a preventive measure and adjuvant treatment for viral infections, e.g., SARS-CoV-2. Even though it cannot be presented as a single treatment, its beneficial effects are beyond doubt. The World Health Organization has deemed it an essential part of any balanced diet with immunomodulatory properties. OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to review the literature on the effects of garlic compounds and preparations on immunomodulation and viral infection management, with emphasis on SARS-CoV- -2. METHODS: Exhaustive literature search has been carried out on electronic databases. CONCLUSION: Garlic is a fundamental part of a well-balanced diet which helps maintain general good health. The reported information regarding garlic's ability to beneficially modulate inflammation and the immune system is encouraging. Nonetheless, more efforts must be made to understand the actual medicinal properties and mechanisms of action of the compounds found in this plant to inhibit or diminish viral infections, particularly SARS-CoV-2. Based on our findings, we propose a series of innovative strategies to achieve such a challenge in the near future.

• MeSH
• česnek * MeSH
• COVID-19 * MeSH
• farmakoterapie COVID-19 MeSH
• imunomodulace MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• metabolické nemoci * MeSH
• rostlinné extrakty farmakologie   MeSH
• SARS-CoV-2 MeSH
• Check Tag
• lidé MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• přehledy MeSH

Teicoplanin is a natural lipoglycopeptide antibiotic with a similar activity spectrum as vancomycin; however, it has with the added benefit to the patient of low cytotoxicity. Both teicoplanin and vancomycin antibiotics are actively used in medical practice in the prophylaxis and treatment of severe life-threatening infections caused by gram-positive bacteria, including methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecium and Clostridium difficile. The expression of vancomycin Z (vanZ), encoded either in the vancomycin A (vanA) glycopeptide antibiotic resistance gene cluster or in the genomes of E. faecium, as well as Streptococcus pneumoniae and C. difficile, was shown to specifically compromise the antibiotic efficiency through the inhibition of teicoplanin binding to the bacterial surface. However, the exact mechanisms of this action and protein structure remain unknown. In this study, the three-dimensional structure of VanZ from E. faecium EnGen0191 was predicted by using the I-TASSER web server. Based on the VanZ structure, a benzimidazole based ligand was predicted to bind to the VanZ by molecular docking. Importantly, this new ligand, named G3K, was further confirmed to specifically inhibit VanZ-mediated resistance to teicoplanin in vivo.

• MeSH
• antibakteriální látky farmakologie   MeSH
• bakteriální léková rezistence účinky léků   MeSH
• bakteriální proteiny metabolismus   MeSH
• grampozitivní bakteriální infekce farmakoterapie   MeSH
• grampozitivní bakterie účinky léků   MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• lipoglykopeptidy farmakologie   MeSH
• mikrobiální testy citlivosti metody   MeSH
• simulace molekulového dockingu metody   MeSH
• teikoplanin farmakologie   MeSH
• vankomycin farmakologie   MeSH
• Check Tag
• lidé MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH