The COVID-19 pandemic, first reported on 31 December 2019 detected in Wuhan, China, is now affecting 221 countries and territories around the world causing a global crisis. To the date there are 127,249,568 cases and 2,788,444 deaths and the numbers are still raising rapidly. Although vaccine trials are ongoing, further studies are needed for a safe vaccine with a long term immunity. Moreover, there is no specific antiviral agent for this deathly disease. Thus an effective and quick treatment is immediately needed. Because the improvement of effective vaccines or a specific antiviral drug takes time, phytotherapy seems to be an option because of the easiness of finding the plants and are effective widely in the body dissimilar to specific therapeutic drugs. Thus, the antiviral effect of Rhus Coriaria has been demonstrated in clinical laboratory studies. These laboratory studies suggest that sumac may be effective on COVID-19 virus. The aim of this review is to update the current knowledge of antiviral activity of Rhus Coriaria (Sumac) and question its potential effect in the fight against COVID-19.

Keywords : SARS-CoV-2, Sumac, Rhus Coriaria, Antiviral plants, Coronavirus