protective effect of methanolic extract of berberis integerrima bunge. root on carbon tetrachloride-induced testicular injury in wistar rats

background: tissue protective effect of compounds with antioxidant properties has been demonstrated. the alkaloids found in barberry root are considered as antioxidants. objective: according to barberry protective effects in different tissues, in this study, the protective effect of berberis integerrima bge. root )mebir) was evaluated against ccl4-induced testicular damages in wistar rats. materials and methods: 40 mature male rats were randomly divided into 5 groups: 1: normal control, 2: sham: received ccl4 diluted in olive oil (50% v/v; 1ml/kg bw), intraperitoneally, twice a week for 4 weeks, 3 and 4: sham rats treated with mebir (250 and 500 mg/kg bw) for 28 days, 5: sham rats treated with silymarin (50 mg/kg bw) for 28 days. after 28 days, serum testosterone level, absolute testis weight, catalase activity, malondialdehyde level, and histological parameters were investigated. results: in the treated rats with mebir (250 and 500 mg/kg bw) or silymarin (50 mg/kg bw), there was a significant increase in the absolute testis weight, testosterone level, seminiferous tubules diameter (p<0.001), thickness of the epithelium, tubule differentiation index) p<0.001), spermiogenesis index (p<0.001), the activity of catalase, and a significant decrease in interstitial tissue thickness (p<0.001) and malondialdehyde level in comparison with ccl4-treated group. the effect of the mebir at dose of 500 mg/kg bw is more than that of the standard drug, silymarin (50 mg/kg bw). conclusion: from the results, it is suggested that the protective effects of mebir is possibly due to antioxidant effects of its bioactive compounds.