Background: Allium sativum L., or garlic, is one of the most studied plants worldwide within the field of traditional medicine. Current interests lie in the potential use of garlic as a preventive measure and adjuvant treatment for viral infections, e.g., SARS-CoV-2. Even though it cannot be presented as a single treatment, its beneficial effects are beyond doubt. The World Health Organization has deemed it an essential part of any balanced diet with immunomodulatory properties. Objective: The aim of the study was to review the literature on the effects of garlic compounds and preparations on immunomodulation and viral infection management, with emphasis on SARS-CoV- -2. Method: Exhaustive literature search has been carried out on electronic databases. Conclusion: Garlic is a fundamental part of a well-balanced diet which helps maintain general good health. The reported information regarding garlic’s ability to beneficially modulate inflammation and the immune system is encouraging. Nonetheless, more efforts must be made to understand the actual medicinal properties and mechanisms of action of the compounds found in this plant to inhibit or diminish viral infections, particularly SARS-CoV-2. Based on our findings, we propose a series of innovative strategies to achieve such a challenge in the near future.

The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 and its rapid global spread underscores the urgent need for novel therapeutic strategies. This study investigates the antiviral potential of Allium sativum (garlic) extracts against SARS-CoV-2, focusing on disruption of the spike protein’s receptor-binding domain (RBD) interaction with angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), a critical step in viral entry. Two garlic cultivars (Tigre and Fermín) were processed via oven-drying or freeze-drying, followed by maceration with CH₂Cl₂/MeOH (1:1) and fractionation with liquid–liquid partition. ELISA immunoassays revealed that freeze-dried Tigre (TL) extracts had the highest inhibitory activity (42.16% at 0.1 µg/mL), with its aqueous fraction achieving 57.26% inhibition at 0.01 µg/mL. Chemical profiling via GC-MS found sulfur and other types of compounds. Molecular docking identified three garlic TL-derived aqueous fraction compounds with strong binding affinities (ΔG = −7.5 to −6.9 kcal/mol) to the RBD-ACE2 interface. Furthermore, ADME in silico analysis highlighted one of them (L17) as the main candidate, having high gastrointestinal absorption, blood–brain barrier permeability, and compliance with drug-likeness criteria. These findings underscore garlic-derived compounds as promising inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 entry, calling for further preclinical validation. The study integrates experimental and computational approaches to advance natural product-based antiviral discovery, emphasizing the need for standardized formulations to address therapeutic variability across viral variants.

Drug-resistant tuberculosis increases the risk of first-line drugs failure, and one strategy involves the identification of new molecular mechanisms of drug resistance. Mycobacterium tuberculosis lipases play a role in the synthesis of bacterial cell wall lipids. In addition, different studies have shown that lipases are associated with drug resistance. The NLH-H protein (Rv1399c) from M. tuberculosis has been characterized, and its overexpression decreases susceptibility to tetrahydrolipstatin. The MSMEI_4050 gene of Mycolicibacterium smegmatis encoded a protein which has more than 30% identity with the NLN-H protein and shares the SER-ARG-HIS catalytic triad. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of MSMEI_4050 expression on drug resistance in M. smegmatis as a M. tuberculosis model. MSMEI_4050 gene overexpression and inhibition were achieved by using the pMV261 vector and CRISPR interference system, respectively. Confirmation of gene expression was determined using qPCR. To evaluate the effect of MSMEI_4050 expression on drug resistance, resazurin microtiter assays and kinetic growth curves were generated. Additionally, molecular docking modeling assays were performed. The results demonstrated that the overexpression of MSMEI_4050 decreased rifampicin resistance in M. smegmatis, whereas the opposite effect was observed upon MSMEI_4050 inhibition. Molecular docking analysis revealed a positive value of the change in Gibbs free energy estimation between MSMEI_4050 and rifampicin, suggesting that no direct protein‒drug interaction occurs at the active site of the protein. MSMEI_4050 expression is associated with rifampicin resistance; further studies are needed to understand the role of MSMEI_4050 in the mechanism underlying rifampicin resistance.