the effects of peripheral injection of matricaria chamomilla extract on morphine withdrawal syndrome in rats

background: matricaria chamomilla (mc) contains flavonoids such as apigenine which exerts benzodiazepine-like activity, therefore it may be helpful for morphine withdrawal syndrome treatment. in this study the effects of peripheral (ip) injection of mc hydroalcoholic extract was investigated on morphine withdrawal syndrome signs in rats. material &methods;: 24male wistar rats (200-250gr) were addicted with morphine injections twice a day for 7 days. then the animals were divided into 4 groups (n= 6): control group (saline) and three chamomile groups that received chamomile extract (10, 25, 50 mg/kg/ip), 30 min before naloxone administration. in the test day, all groups were received naloxone (5mg/kg/ip) 3h after last injection of morphine and then the withdrawal behavior (jumping, climbing) were assessed for 30 minute. the obtained data were analyzed using anova. results: our results showed that, all three doses of mc extract which were injected intraperitoneally, attenuated dose-dependently most of morphine withdrawal signs such as jumping and climbing(p < 0.001). conclusion: these results suggest that, the intra-peritoneal injection of mc extract can reduces effectively morphine withdrawal syndrome in rats. therefore it is necessary to study its effect on humans and also identify its effective components.