Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID‐19) has become a major health problem causing severe acute respiratory illness in humans. It has spread rapidly around the globe since its first identification in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The causative virus is called severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2), and the World Health Organization (WHO) named the new epidemic disease Coronavirus Disease (COVID‐19). The incidence of COVID‐19 continues to increase with more than three million confirmed cases and over 244,000 deaths worldwide. There is currently no specific treatment or vaccine against COVID‐19. Therefore, in the absence of pharmaceutical interventions, the implementation of precautions and hygienic measures will be essential to control and to minimize human transmission of the virus. In this review, we highlight the epidemiology, transmission, symptoms, and treatment of this disease, as well as future strategies to manage the spread of this fatal coronavirus.

Propolis is a resin that honeybees produce by mixing saliva and beeswax with exudate gathered from botanical sources. The presentin vitrostudy investigated the potential use of propolis as a multitarget therapeutic product and the physicochemical properties, chemical composition, and immunomodulatory, antioxidant, antibacterial, and anticancer properties of a propolis extract from the northern Morocco region (PNM). Pinocembrin, chrysin, and quercetin were the main phenolic compounds of PNM as measured in HPLC. The PNM showed significant inhibitory effects against all tested Gram-positive and Gram-negative strains and showed high antioxidant activities by scavenging free radicals with IC50 (DPPH = 0.02, ABTS = 0.04, and FRAP = 0.04 mg/ml). In addition, PNM induced a dose-dependent cytostatic effect in MCF-7, HCT, and THP-1 cell lines at noncytotoxic concentrations with IC50 values of 479.22, 108.88, and 50.54 μg/ml, respectively. The production of tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) was decreased in a dose-dependent manner in LPS-stimulated human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMNCs), whereas the production of the anti-inflammatory interleukin-10 (IL-10) was increased in a dose-dependent manner reaching 15-fold compared to the levels measured in untreated PBMNCs. Overall, the results showed that the traditionally known multitarget therapeutic properties of the PNM seem to be mediated, at least in part, through cytostatic, antibacterial, and immunomodulatory effects.

Pollen is a male flower gametophyte located in the anthers of stamens in angiosperms and a considerable source of compounds with health protective potential. In the present work, phytochemical screening was carried out as well as analysis of the antioxidant and antibacterial properties of pollen extracts from Micromeria fruticosa, Achillea fragrantissima, and Phoenix dactylifera growing wild in Palestine. Phytochemical screening examined the total flavonol, flavone and phenolic content. The DPPH (1,2-Diphenyl-1-Picrylhydrazyl) and FRAP (ferric reducing antioxidant power) methods were used to assess antioxidant propriety, and disc diffusion, minimum inhibitory and bactericidal concentration tests were used to test the pollen extract’s antibacterial activity against multidrug-resistant (MDR) clinical isolates. The highest level of total phenolic was found in the extract of Micromeria fruticosa (56.78 ± 0.49 mg GAE (Gallic Acid Equivalent)/g). The flavone and flavonol content of samples ranged from 2.48 ± 0.05 to 8.03 ± 0.01 mg QE (Quercetin Equivalent)/g. Micromeria fruticosa pollen with IC50 values of 0.047 and 0.039 mg/mL in the DPPH and FRAP assays, respectively, showed the greatest radical scavenging action. In addition, this pollen showed a mild antibacterial action against the microorganisms studied, with MICs varying from 0.625 to 10 mg/mL and inhibition diameters ranging from 13.66 ± 1.5 to 16.33 ± 1.5 mm.

The biological activities of propolis samples are the result of many bioactive compounds present in the propolis. The aim of the present study was to determine the various chemical compounds of some selected propolis samples collected from Palestine and Morocco by the High-Performance Liquid Chromatography–Photodiode Array Detection (HPLC-PDA) method, as well as the antioxidant and antibacterial activities of this bee product. The chemical analysis of propolis samples by HPLC-PDA shows the cinnamic acid content in the Palestinian sample is higher compared to that in Moroccan propolis. The results of antioxidant activity demonstrated an important free radical scavenging activity (2,2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH); 2,2′-azino-bis 3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid (ABTS) and reducing power assays) with EC₅₀ values ranging between 0.02 ± 0.001 and 0.14 ± 0.01 mg/mL. Additionally, all tested propolis samples possessed a moderate antibacterial activity against bacterial strains. Notably, Minimum Inhibitory Concentrations (MICs) values ranged from 0.31 to 2.50 mg/mL for Gram-negative bacterial strains and from 0.09 to 0.125 mg/mL for Gram-positive bacterial strains. The S2 sample from Morocco and the S4 sample from Palestine had the highest content of polyphenol level. Thus, the strong antioxidant and antibacterial properties were apparently due to the high total phenolic and flavone/flavonol contents in the samples. As a conclusion, the activities of propolis samples collected from both countries are similar, while the cinnamic acid in the Palestinian samples was more than that of the Moroccan samples.

Background: Anacyclus pyrethrum (A. pyrethrum) is a wild species belonging to the family Asteraceae, which is used in traditional medicines. Aim of the study: This work was undertaken to study the chemical composition, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and wound healing properties of hydroalcoholic extracts of different parts (roots, seeds, leaves, and capitula) of A. pyrethrum. Material and Methods: The phytochemical analysis of the studied extracts was conducted by GC-MS. The analgesic activity was evaluated in mice using acetic acid and formaldehyde methods. The anti-inflammatory activity was tested using the inhibitory method of edema induced in rats. The healing activity of the hydroethanolic extracts was explored by excision and incision wound healing models in rats. Results: The phytochemical analysis of the studied plant extracts affirmed the presence of interesting compounds, including some newly detected elements, such as sarcosine, N-(trifluoroacetyl)-butyl ester, levulinic acid, malonic acid, palmitic acid, morphinan-6-One, 4,5.alpha.-epoxy-3-hydroxy-17-methyl, 2,4-undecadiene-8,10-diyne-N-tyramide, and isovaleric acid. The extracts of different parts (roots, seeds, leaves, and capitula) exhibited promising anti-inflammatory, analgesic, and wound healing effects, with percentages of inhibition up to 98%, 94%, and 100%, respectively. Conclusion: This study might contribute towards the well-being of society as it provides evidence on the potential analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and wound healing properties of A. pyrethrum.