Inhibitory activities of microalgal extracts against Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) antigen expression in lymphoblastoid cells

The inhibitory activities of microalgal extracts against the expression of three EBV antigens, latent membrane protein (LMP)1, Epstein-Barr nuclear antigen (EBNA)1 and Z Epstein-Barr reactivation activator (ZEBRA) were assessed by immunocytochemistry. The observation that the methanol extracts and their fractions from Ankistrodesmus convolutus, Synechococcus elongatus and Spirulina platensis exhibited inhibitory activity against EBV proteins in three Burkitt’s lymphoma cell lines at concentrations as low as 20 μg/ml suggests that microalgae could be a potential source of antiviral compounds against EBV.