Momordica Charantia and Influenza A
The Momordica Charantia plant was determined to contain a protein that shows antiviral activity. The Momordica Charantia is a tropical plant found in China, India, Africa and parts of the Caribbean and is part of the cucumber family. Indigenous populations have used the fruit for many years in food and folk medicine (Hamissou, Smith, Carter, and Triplett 641). Researchers have found that the plant protein inhibits H1N1, H3N2 and H5N1 subtypes.
Of the medicinal plants studied, the Momordica Charantia plant has been reported to contain many antiviral properties (Pongthanapisith, Ikuta, Puthavathana, and Leelamanit 1). The seed of the M. Charantia was purified of the protein using Fast Protein Liquid Chromatography. The proteins are separated using Sodium dodecyl polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). The technique involves placing the protein mixture on gel containing an immobilized pH gradient. The gel slows the passage of proteins and acts as a molecular filter. Samples are loaded into the SDS-polyacrylamide gel and the electric field is applied. The gel slows the passage of proteins and acts as a molecular filter separating different protein molecules according to their size. Smaller proteins move faster than larger proteins and are found near the bottom of the gel. The gel is treated with a coomassie blue stain that binds to the proteins and allows the researcher to visualize the protein bands. The SDS-PAGE method is better suited for separating smaller molecules like protein.(Nelson and Cox 93-94)
Madin-Darby canine kidney cells were inoculated with Influenza virus and incubated. The number of infected cells was counted under a microscope. Proteins of the Momordica Charantia were added to the infected cells. After further incubation overnight, the infected cells were identified with nucleoprotein antibodies of Influenza A. The protein showed effective antiviral action on a broad range of influenza A subtypes including H5N1, H1N1 and H3N2. The plant protein shows a great potential for being used in the treatment of varies types of Influenza.

Works Cited
Hamissou, Mijitaba, Amanda C. Smith, Robert E. Carter, Jr., and Jimmy K. Triplett, II. “Antioxidative Properties of Bitter Gourd (Momordica Charantia) and Zucchini (Cucurbita Pepo).” Antioxidative Properties of Bitter Gourd (Momordica Charantia) and Zucchini (Cucurbita Pepo) (2013): 641-647. http://www.nclive.org/. Web. 1 Nov. 2013.
Nelson, David L., and Michael M. Cox. Lehninger Principles of Biochemistry. 6th ed. New York: Susan Winslow, 2013. Print.
Pongthanapisith, Viroj, Kazuyoshi Ikuta, Pilaipan Puthavathana, and Wichet Leelamanit. “Antiviral Protein of Momordica Charantia L Inhibits Different Subtypes of Influenza A.” Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine 2013 (2013): n. pag. http://hindawi.com/journals/ecam/2013/729081/. Web. 25 Oct. 2013.