Pharmacological Potential of Some Indonesian Medicinal Plants as Promising Options for COVID-19 During the Pandemic Era: A Literature Review

The utilization of traditional medicine in Indonesia is highly prevalent and favoured by the Indonesian people for maintaining health and treating ailments, drawing upon the experience, knowledge, and skills of ancestors, family, or parents. Traditional medicine, known for its natural properties and minimal side effects, is extensively employed in local healing practices to address various diseases. This is evident in literary works like Serat Kawruh and Serat Centhini. In response to the pandemic, approximately 79% of Indonesia's population turned to medicinal plants to bolster their immunity during the COVID-19 outbreak. The Indonesian government also lends support by providing online resources in the form of books that offer recommendations on the usage of several medicinal plants. The literature review followed the PRISMA guidelines. Between April and June 2022, a literature search was conducted in many databases, including Scopus, Pubmed, NCBI, and EBSCO, with an article publication timeframe of 2012-2022. Some Indonesian medicinal plants may prevent and treat COVID-19. 1300 articles on SARS-CoV-2-fighting Indonesian plants were found in various databases. After the screening, 48 qualified scientific articles were found suitable for this review article. The results found that many Indonesian local plants have a potential effect as antivirals to inhibit COVID-19. However, further experimental and animal studies are needed to investigate the antiviral activities of each plant in vitro before proceeding with clinical trials in humans.