Phytochemical Analysis and Cellular Uptake Study of an Ayurvedic Formulation, Vyaghryadi Kashayam Used in the Clinical Management of COVID-19.

Repurposing of drugs is one of the ways to combat COVID-19 and Traditional Chinese Medicine set a precedence for such an approach at the outset of the pandemic. In India, the Ministry of AYUSH has recommended a number of formulations in clinical management of COVID-19. Vyaghryadi Kashayam (VK) is a classical formulation indicated in the management of Vatakaphajvara (a type of fever) which is amongst the medicines recommended for management of COVID-19. The constituents of VK are Zingiber officinale Roscoe, Tinospora cordifolia (Thunb.) Miers and Solanum xanthocarpum Schrad & Wendl. A chemical profile of VK was generated using HPTLC and LC-MS/MS QTOF. Out of the 31 identified phytochemicals in VK, it was found that seven have been reported to have activity against SARS-CoV-2 in prior docking studies. Cellular uptake studies of VK in Caco2 cells showed that all these seven phytochemicals were absorbed by the cells. These findings provide preliminary hints about the potential of VK in clinical management of COVID-19. Further confirmatory in-vitro studies are warranted before large scale clinical studies are initiated.