In Vitro HIV Type-1 Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitory Activity from Leaf Extracts ofScoparia dulcisL

Aqueous and methanolic crude extracts of Scoparia dulcis L. leaves were screened for activity against human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) type-1 reverse transcriptase (RT) activity. The results were expressed as IC50. Zidovudine, which was used as a standard drug, showed an IC50 of 38.0 μg mL−1, whereas the aqueous and methanolic extracts from leaves of S. dulcis showed an IC50 of 60.0 and 47.0 μg mL−1, respectively. In this study, methanolic extract of S. dulcis leaves showed remarkable HIV type-1 reverse transcriptase inhibitory activity comparable to that of a standard such as zidovudine. Observed results using standardized parameters indicated that S. dulcis has promising HIV type-1 reverse transcriptase inhibitory activity.