Decreased Intensity of Japanese Encephalitis Virus Infection in Chick Chorioallantoic Membrane Under Influence of Ultradiluted Belladonna Extract

Homoeopathic medicine Belladonna is effective in preventing Japanese Encephalitis (JE), a recent study conducted by the Kolkata-based School of Tropical Medicine has shown. Conducted in collaboration with the Central Council for Research in Homeopathy (CCRH) under the Department of AYUSH, researchers claim to have found a probable role for Belladonna in preventing JE virus infection.

Japanese Encephalitis presents a significant risk to humans and animals, particularly in South East Asia (including India) where around 50,000 cases and 10,000 deaths occur per year, particularly affecting children below 10 years. The statistics reveal that about 50 per cent of the patients who develop JE suffer from permanent neurological defects and 30 per cent of them die due to the disease.

The results of the study are published in the latest issue of the American Journal of Infectious Diseases. The abstract of the study reads:

Abstract:

Problem statement: No specific antiviral therapy is currently available despite an emergence and resurgence of Japanese encephalitis in South-East Asian Countries. There are only few recent studies, which were aimed to treat Japanese encephalitis with newer drugs. There is thus a real need for study on antiviral agents that can reduce the toll of death and neurological sequelae resulting from infection with this virus.

Approach: Optimum dilution of the JE virus was determined which could produce significant number of pocks on Chorioallantoic Membrane (CAM). Then ultradiluted belladonna preparations were used to see their inhibitory action on JE virus infection in CAM.

Results: Ultradiluted belladonna showed significantly decreased pock count in CAM in comparison to JE virus control.

Conclusion: Ultradiluted belladonna could inhibit JE virus infection in CAM, which may be mediated through glycosidase inhibitory role of calystegines present in belladonna.

The full research paper is available here: