Study on the antipyretic activity of thyme (Thymus broussonetii) in experimental rats

Previous pharmacological essays had reported the anti-inflammatory and analgesic activities of Thymus broussonetii extracts. This current study extended these previous works and aimed at investigating the potential antipyretic effect of T. broussonetii. For that, we have tested the effect of aqueous, butanolic and ethyl acetate extracts of T. broussonetii on yeastinduced fever in rats. Our results showed that the three extracts (aqueous, butanolic and ethyl acetate), induced a significant reduction of rectal temperature in febrile rats indicating that T. broussonetii produce a marked antipyretic activity. However neither the thyme extracts, nor acetylsalicylic acid, did induce hypothermia in rats. This antipyretic effect may be related to the extract’s analgesic and anti-inflammatory activities. On the other hand, no mortality and no signs of toxicity have been observed at the tested doses indicating that the three extracts of thyme present low toxicity. These findings provided strong arguments and validation of the popular use of this plant as analgesic, anti-inflammatory and antipyretic herb.