Bergnia ciliata is known to contain phenolic compounds (16) . Polyphenols, especially high polymeric procyanidines possess strong anti-influenza viral activity (17) , which is in agreement with our previous study (18) . In our previous study (19) , methanol-water extract of Bergenia ligulata, which is taxonomically closely related to B. ciliata, inhibited the growth of influenza virus A in cell culture with IC 50 of 10 mg ml À1 . The extract also inhibited the viral protein and nucleic acid synthesis (18) . In the present study, the methanol extract of B. ciliata inhibited the influenza virus A and HSV-1 indicating that the genus Bergenia could be the source of potent antiviral drugs. Again potent activity of A. rivularis against both viruses indicated the high prospect of finding antiviral drugs in Saxifragaceae family.