en Pharmacology Pharmacology مقاله پژوهشی Original Research Article <p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:16px;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;"><span style="color:#008080;"><strong>Background & Objective:</strong></span> Although <em>Pinus eldarica</em> is considered as a pine with many valuable phytochemical constituents, little is known about the pharmacological effects of its bark extract. Therefore, the present study aimed to evaluate in vivo antioxidant activity and also the possible beneficial effects of the bark extract of <em>P. eldarica </em>on dexamethasone-induced dyslipidemia in rats.<br> <strong><span style="color:#008080;">Materials & Methods:</span></strong> Total phenolic content was determined using Folin-Ciocalteu method. The in vivo antioxidant assays included the measurement of hydroperoxides level and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) value in plasma samples of rats receiving intraperitoneal injections (IP) injections of plant extract (100, 200 and 400 mg/kg) for 28 days. For induction of dyslipidemia, dexamethasone (10 mg/kg) was subcutaneously administered during 8 days. Different doses of extract were given orally plus dexamethasone in three groups of animals. Serum lipids, blood glucose and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels and liver histopathology were assessed.<br> <span style="color:#008080;"><strong>Results:</strong></span> High total phenolic content was determined as 375&plusmn;1.2 mg gallic acid equivalent/ g of dried bark extract. The extract significantly decreased plasma hydroperoxides level at all doses and increased FRAP value at the dose of 400 mg/kg during in vivo antioxidant analysis. <em>P. eldarica </em>led to a significant reduction in serum levels of blood glucose, total cholesterol, triglyceride and MDA and improved liver histopathological changes at the doses of 200 and 400 mg/kg in dyslipidemic rats.<br> <span style="color:#008080;"><strong>Conclusion: </strong></span>These findings suggest the potential antioxidant, antihyperlipidemic and antihyperglycemic activities for the bark extract of <em>P. eldarica</em> which may be due to the high amounts of phenolic compounds.</span></span></p> Antioxidants, Dexamethasone, Hyperlipidemias, Lipid Peroxidation, Pinus eldarica 49 56 http://journal.zums.ac.ir/browse.php?a_code=A-10-5246-1&slc_lang=en&sid=1 Leila Safaeian leila_safaeian@pharm.mui.ac.ir 5200319475328460049345 5200319475328460049345 Yes Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran Behzad Zolfaghari zolfaghari@pharm.mui.ac.ir 5200319475328460049346 5200319475328460049346 No Department of Pharmacognosy, School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran Najmeh Assarzadeh assarzadehn@gmail.com 5200319475328460049347 5200319475328460049347 No Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran Akram Ghadirkhomi ghdrkhm@yahoo.com 5200319475328460049348 5200319475328460049348 No Office for Supervision on Food, Cosmetics and Hygienic Products, Vice Chancellery for Food and Drugs, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran