~ 679 ~ Journal of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry 2018; 7(6): 679-685 E-ISSN: 2278-4136 P-ISSN: 2349-8234 JPP 2018; 7(6): 679-685 Received: 15-09-2018 Accepted: 18-10-2018 Louai Alallan Department of Pharmacognosy and Medical Plants, Faculty of Pharmacy, Damascus University, Syria Mhd Isam Hasan Agha Department of Pharmacology and toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Syrian private University, Daraa Road, Dear Ali, Syria Abdul Naser Omerein Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Damascus University, Syria Mohamad Houssam Al Balkhi Department of Pharmacognosy and Medical Plants, Faculty of Pharmacy, Damascus University, Syria Correspondence Mohamad Houssam Al Balkhi Department of Pharmacognosy and Medical Plants, Faculty of Pharmacy, Damascus University, Syria Anti-arthritic effects of Anchusa strigosa extracts on complete F reund’s adjuvant-induced arthritis in rats Louai Alallan, Mhd Isam Hasan Agha, Abdul Naser Omerein and Mohamad Houssam Al Balkhi Abstract Background: Anchusa strigosa, widely distributed in the Middle East region, has been used in traditional medicine to alleviate inflammation and arthritis. Objective: In this study the aqueous (AqE) and methanol (ME) whole plant-extracts were evaluated for their anti-arthritic effects on Complete Freund’s adjuvant (CFA) -induced arthritis in rat model, and compared to untreated healthy control group (CTRL) as well as to arthritis control and betamethasone (BTM)-treated groups. Materials and Methods: Dried plant material of Anchusa strigosa was subjected to hot continuous extraction using different solvents to obtain methanol and water extracts. Arthritis was induced by intradermal injection of Complete Freund's adjuvant into the right hind paw of rats. Extracts, at doses of 250 and 500 mg/kg, were administered orally after CFA injection up to the completion of study (for 21 days). Betamethasone (3 mg/ kg) was used as a positive control. The effect of the extracts on paw edema, arthritis index, body weight and on hematological parameters was carried out. Results: Methanol and aqueous extracts significantly decreased paw edema, arthritis index, and attenuated body weight loss. Furthermore, plant extracts reduced the elevated serum WBC level in CFA- induced rats. Conclusion: The results of this study suggest that A. strigosa has the potential effect for the treatment of inflammatory disorders and rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Keywords: Anchusa strigosa, betamethasone, Complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA), induced arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) Introduction Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a progressive chronic, inflammatory, autoimmune systemic disease [1] . The risk of morbidity and mortality by this disease remains high in the last decade [2] . RA is characterized by aggressive synovial hyperplasia and synovitis [3] . There are many valuable strategies for the treatment of RA including traditional nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) combined with steroids or disease-modifying anti- rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) and also the novel biologics, such as tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) antibody and the decoy TNF-α receptor [4] . However, the high cost as well as the incidence of serious related-drug side effects still associated with these treatments [5] . The optimal treatment procedure to prevent long-term joint damage and functional decline is still unclear [6] . For this reason, alternative therapies, using medicinal plants, to provide an effective but safer treatment of arthritis are receiving increasing public interest. Animal disease models, that faithfully reproduce key aspects of human RA, are of great importance. These models play a crucial role in assessing various aspects of many new potential RA treatments. RA-like disease, created in rodent populations by complete freund's adjuvant (CFA), shares a number of characteristics with RA [7] . CFA behaves similar to the pathology of RA, by creating hyperplasia of the synovial tissues, inflammatory infiltration of the joints, and the destruction of bone and cartilage [8] . Anchusa strigosa Banks et Sol (Boraginaceae), which called Lisan-el-thor in Arabic, is a perennial herb that is very common and widely distributed in the Middle Eastern region. This plant exhibited a broad spectrum of biological activities. It is used locally as antiulcer [9] for wound healing [10] , diuretic and for abdominal pain [11] , arthritis, rheumatism, gout. [12, 13] The antimicrobial activity of both volatile and fixed oil extracted from Anchusa strigosa was studied, [14] while Nader et al. [15] showed that the whole plant extract has anti-bacterial and anti-fungal activities. Antidiabetic activity of the aqueous extract of A. strigosa was also studied [16] .