en Clinical Medicine Clinical Medicine مقاله پژوهشی Original Research Article <p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:16px;"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"><strong><span style="color:#ffffff;"><span style="background-color:#16a085;">Background and Objective:</span></span>&nbsp;</strong>There is a worldwide trend towards substitute synthetic antioxidants with natural alternatives to treat inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) such as ulcerative colitis (UC). This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of <em>Dracocephalum kotschyi</em>&nbsp;extract on tissue injury and oxidative stress in an acetic-acid induced colitis model.<br> <strong><span style="color:#ffffff;"><span style="background-color:#16a085;">Materials and Methods:</span></span> </strong>48 male Wistar rats were allocated to 6 groups: healthy control, colitis control, and 4 treatment groups which administrated 10, 25, and 50 mg/kg of <em>D. kotschyi</em> extract respectively, and 200 mg/kg sulfasalazine once daily for 8&nbsp;days&nbsp;after&nbsp;colitis&nbsp;induced. Colitis severity was assessed using histologic and macroscopic changes of damaged colon, and enzymatic antioxidant activities like superoxide dismutase (SOD), total thiol (&ndash;SH), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and lipid peroxidation marker MDA (malondialdehyde) were evaluated.<br> <strong><span style="color:#ffffff;"><span style="background-color:#16a085;">Results:</span></span> </strong><em>D. kotschyi</em> extract (50mg/kg) decreased colonic macroscopic and histological damage scores, which were accompanied by a significant decrease in lipid peroxidation, and an increase in colonic antioxidant markers.<br> <strong><span style="color:#ffffff;"><span style="background-color:#16a085;">Conclusion:</span></span>&nbsp;</strong>The results suggest that <em>D. kotschyi</em> extract is effective against oxidative bowel damages induced in IBD and its beneficial effect is, at least in part, due to its antioxidant properties.</span></span></p> Colitis, Oxidative stress, Herbal medicine, Inflammatory bowel disease 39 46 http://journal.zums.ac.ir/browse.php?a_code=A-10-5682-1&slc_lang=en&sid=1 Zakieh Keshavarzi zakieh_keshavarzi@yahoo.com 5200319475328460066848 5200319475328460066848 No Natural Products and Medicinal Plants Research Center, North Khorasan University of Medical Sciences, Bojnurd, Iran Fereshteh Safari Fsafari2002@gmail.com 5200319475328460066849 5200319475328460066849 No Dept. of Physiology and Pharmacology, North Khorasan University of Medical Sciences, Bojnurd, Iran Bagher Alipour Dr.alipour@gmail.com 5200319475328460066850 5200319475328460066850 No Dept. of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Faculty of Basic Science, University of Mazandaran, Mazandaran, Iran Amirreza Khoshniat Khoshniat_Amir@yahoo.com 5200319475328460066851 5200319475328460066851 No Student Research Committee, School of Medicine, North Khorasan University of Medical Sciences, Bojnurd, Iran Reza Azizi RezaAzizi1988@gmail.com 5200319475328460066852 5200319475328460066852 No Student Research Committee, School of Medicine, North Khorasan University of Medical Sciences, Bojnurd, Iran Mehran Vatanchian Mehran_vatan44@gmail.com 5200319475328460066853 5200319475328460066853 No Natural Products and Medicinal Plants Research Center, North Khorasan University of Medical Sciences, Bojnurd, Iran Fatemeh Maghool fmaghool@gmail.com 5200319475328460066854 5200319475328460066854 Yes Poursina Hakim Digestive Diseases Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran