Protective Effect of Hydroalcoholic Extract of Hawthorn Fruit on CaCl2-Induced Arrhythmias in Rat

Antioxidant agents play an important role in prevention and protection in heart diseases، therefore، are used as medicinal plants in traditional medicine. Hawthorn fruit extract، with strong antioxidant properties، has been used effecively in treatment of many diseases. The aim of this study was to investigate the protective effect of hydroalcoholic extract of Hawthorn fruit on CaCI2-induced arrhythmias in rat. Subjects and Male Sprague Dawley rats divided in control، amiodarone (10 mg/kg، iv) and Hawthorn-extract groups receiving either saline solution (1ml/kg/day، by gavage) or hawthorn extract (100 and 200 mg/kg/day، by gavage) respectively for 10 days. Both groups before experiments and 10 days later lead II electrocardiogram was recorded for calculating electrophysiological parameters such as QRS complex. CaCI2-induced arrhythmia was used for evaluation of possible antiarrhythmic calcium antagonistic effect. The arrhythmia was produced by i. v. injection of a CaCl2 2. 5% solution (140 mg/kg) and percentage of ventricular premature beats (VPB)، ventricular fibrillation (VF) and ventricular tachycardia (VT) were recorded in hawthorn groups and was compared to control and amiodarone (10 mg/kg، iv) groups. Results were analyzed by using one-way ANOVA، Fisher and student t-test. P<0. 05 was considered as significant level. The inotropic and chronotropic effect was not significant with hawthorn extract after 10 days administration. Hawthorn extract displayed antidysrhythmic effects on CaCl2-induced arrhythmia compared to control group by significant reduction of VPB، VF and V. tac، comparable to that of amiodarone. The results of present study such as significant decrease in VPB، VF and V. tac in hawthorn groups showed antiarrhythmic properties of hawthorn fruit extract as a preconditioning agent and suggest the protective effect of hawthorn extract in heart disease comparable to amiodarone.