protective effects of vaccinium arctostaphylos l., berberis thunbergii var. atropurpurea chenault, elaeagnus angustifolia l. and launaea acanthodes (boiss.) o. kuntze against indomethacin-induced gastric ulcers in rats

background: data suggest that v. arctostaphylos, b. thunbergii var. atropurpurea, e. angustifolia and l. acanthodes may prevent gastric ulcers induced by non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (nsaids). objective: to explore the ulcer-protective potential of these plants in indomethacin-induced gastric ulcers in rats. methods: saline, hydro-alcoholic extract of each plant (100, 400, 800 mg/kg) and omeprazole (30 mg/kg) were gavaged to the groups of animals for 4 consecutive days. gastric ulcers were induced by the onetime gavage of indomethacin (30 mg/kg, p.o.). on the fifth day, each group was pretreated with physiological saline as control, extract (100, 400 or 800 mg/kg, p.o.) or omeprazole (30 mg/kg, p.o.) 30 min before the indomethacin administration. the animals were killed 6 h after the indomethacin administration. the stomachs were removed, opened along the greater curvature and washed in physiological saline. a person unaware of the type of treatment received by the animals examined the stomachs under a 3-fold magnifier. the areas and lengths of hemorrhagic lesions induced by indomethacin were measured using a dial caliper and the sum of measurements for each animal was referred to as the ulcer index. results: all extracts reduced the ulcer index significantly compared to the control group (p < 0.05). conclusion: these plants prevent nsaid-induced gastric ulcers in rats. the efficacy and potency of the gastro-protective effect of l. acanthodes appears to be higher than the other 3 plants.