Brassicaceae and Viral Diseases

The influenza virus thrives in a wide range of regions and hosts because of the occurrence of genetic recombination and cross-species transmission of the influenza virus. This leads to huge economic losses in the poultry industry and threatens public health. The influenza A virus subtypes H1N1 (A/H1N1), H3N2 (A/H3N2), and influenza B virus have periodically spread in winter, causing more than 250,000 deaths [1]. Oseltamivir and zanamivir are antiviral agents approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), but these neuraminidase (NA) inhibitors cannot prevent the emergence of resistance [2]. M2 protein inhibitors such as amantadine and rimantadine are active only against the influenza A virus [3]. Therefore, novel antiviral agents are needed to counteract the disadvantages of existing antiviral agents.