Effect of Safflower Flower Extract (Carthamus tinctorius L) on Glutathion Peroxidase and Catalase Activity on Serum in Rats

Due to side effects of chemical drugs, some people again turned to traditional medicine in recent years. One of medicinal plants is Carthamous tinctorius L (safflower) which is used as a relatively cheap dye for making sweets and cooking in addition to its therapeutic effects. Antioxidants are enzymes from body defense systems that play an important role against free radicals. In this study, the effects of safflower flower on serum activity of three important antioxidant enzymes (catalasand glutathion peroxidas) in sixty male wistar rats were studied. These rats randomly were divided into four groups including experimental 1, 2, and 3and also the control group. They were kept in standard cages with equal parts of water, light, temperature and food. The extract of safflower in concentrations of 100, 200 and 300 mg/kg BW respectively were subcutaneously injected to rats of experimental groups 1, 2 and 3 in two periods of 14 and 28 days and blood samples were taken from their hearts and the catalase, and glutathione peroxidase activity were carried out on their serum with spectrophotometry method by Zell Bayou kits. The data was analized using t-test and ANOVA, Tukey's and T tests. No significant difference wes observed among activity of catalase and glutathione peroxidase in controle group in comparision to experimental groups at 14th and 28th of study (p>0.05).