Water Extract of the Chaga Medicinal Mushroom, Inonotus obliquus (Agaricomycetes), Inhibits SARS-CoV-2 Replication in Vero E6 and Vero Cell Culture Experiments

The antiviral properties of water extracts from pharmaceutical raw materials of the chaga mushroom, Inonotus obliquus, were studied against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). All studies with infectious materials were carried out in an isolated virological laboratory of the State Research Center of Virology and Biotechnology Vector of Rospotrebnadzor, which has a sanitary and epidemiological conclusion for the right to work with pathogenic biological agents of I-II pathogenicity groups. Antiviral activity was determined by the ability of I. obliquus water extracts to inhibit the replication of SARS-CoV-2 (nCoV/Victoria /1/2020 strain) in Vero E6 and Vero cell cultures. The results of these studies showed that water extracts of I. obliquus are characterized by low toxicity in Vero and Vero E6 cell cultures and have antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2. The 50% inhibitory concentration ranged from 0.75 to 11.6 μg/mL. A patent for the invention was received (Patent RU, 2741714 C 1, 2021).