Evaluation of antiviral activity in hemolymph from oysters Crassostrea rhizophorae and Crassostrea gigas

¹ Laboratório de Virologia Aplicada, Departamento de Microbiologia e Parasitologia, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, UFSC, Campus Universitário Trindade, Florianópolis, SC, Brazil
² Laboratório de Virologia Aplicada, Departamento de Ciências Farmacêuticas, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, UFSC, Campus Universitário Trindade, Florianópolis, SC, Brazil

Corresponding author: claudias@reitoria.ufsc.br

Received: 23 February 2006
Accepted: 4 May 2006

Abstract

This study describes the in vitro antiviral activity of two species of oyster hemolymph (Crassostrea rhizophorae and C. gigas) collected on Southern Brazilian coastline. Either the acellular and cellular fractions were tested against herpes simplex type-1 (HSV-1), human adenovirus respiratory strain (AdV-5) and simian rotavirus (RV-SA11) by using the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. The evaluation of viral inhibition was performed using four different strategies: simultaneous, pre-infection and post-infection treatments and virucidal assays. The cellular fraction from Crassostrea rhizophorae showed the most prominent inhibition of HSV-1 and AdV-5 replication, particularly in post-infection treatment assay. No inhibition of rotavirus replication was observed. Both oyster hemolymph fractions showed virucidal activity against all tested virus in non-cytotoxic concentrations.