Qom University of Medical Sciences Journal

Background and Objectives: Many herbal medicines have been recommended for the treatment of diabetes. The genus Artemisia has always been of great botanical and pharmaceutical interest, and is used in traditional medicine for the treatment of various diseases. The present study was performed aiming at investigating the effect of alcoholic extract of the aerial parts of Artemisia deserti in normal and streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats.   Methods: To induce diabetes, the rats received a single intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (70mg/kg). Ethanolic extract of Artemisia deserti in amounts of (50, 100, 200, and 400mg/kg body weight) were administrated orally for 28 days in normal and diabetic rats. At the end of treatment, the animals were anesthetized and blood samples were collected from their heart. Then, serum levels of glucose, insulin, total cholesterol, triglyceride, urea, uric acid, and creatinine were measured. Data were analyzed by one-way ANOVA and Tukey’s test. The significance level was defined as p<0.05.   Results: Oral administration of ethanolic extract of aerial parts of Artemisia deserti for 28 days significantly decreased serum levels of glucose, triglyceride, total cholesterol, urea, uric acid, and creatinine in the diabetic rats. Also, oral administration of the plant extract significantly increased serum insulin level in diabetic rats. Oral administration of the extract caused no significant change in the levels of the above mentioned parameters in normal rats.   Conclusion: The results of the present study showed that Artemisia deserti has antidiabetic effect in rats and can be considered for therapeutic purposes.