A Rassouli - Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran
A. FatemiArdestani - epartment of Biochemistry,Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran
F Asadi - Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Tehran University of Medical Sciences,Tehran, Iran

The effects of three leaf extracts on the total cholesterol levels (TC) of serum and liver were investigated in experimentally-induced nutritional hyperlipidemic rats. In nine treatment groups (n=5 each group), hyperlipidemic rats were treated daily with hydromethanolic (total) extract (2.5, 5, 10 mg/kg, intraperitoneal [ip]) and its aqueous fractions, namely fractionA(10, 50, 250 mg/kg, ip) and fraction B (10, 50, 250 mg/kg, ip) for eight days. In negative and positive control groups, animals received normal and hyperlipidemic diets with ip injections of normal saline, respectively. The lipid-lowering effect of total extract on liver cholesterol was more pronounced than that of serum. Fraction A caused a significant dose-dependent decrease in cholesterol levels in both the serum and theliver (p<0.05). Fraction A at dosages of 10, 50 and 250 mg/kg lowered the TC in serum from 1 .40±0.26 mmol/L(mean ± standard deviation; untreatedhyperlipidemic group) to 1.06±0.14, 1.04±0.07 and 0.90±0.08 mmol/L, respectively. At 50 and 250 mg/kg, it lowered the TC in liver significantlyfrom 59.86±10.35 mg/g (untreated) to 42.61±12.08 and 37.16±5.59 mg/g, respectively. Fraction B lowered the level of TC in the serum and liver, butthe results of this treatment were conflicting. Phytochemical screening showed that total extract had moderate levels of flavonoids and a largeamount of tannins, which may account for the observed effects on decreasing TC levels. In conclusion, leaf extracts have beenshown to decrease liver and serumTClevels in hyperlipidemic rats.

Fig; Ficus carica cholesterol; leaf extract; rat