Tabriz University of Medical Sciences Medical Journal of Tabriz University of Medical Sciences 2783-2031 37 1 2015 04 05 The Effect of Ethanolic Extract of Saffron (Crocus sativus L.) on Oxidative Stress Markers in the Hippocampus of Experimental Models of MS 40 49 EN Shabnam Ghaffari Homeira Hatami Gholamreza Dehghan Journal Article 2013 07 13 2013 09 22 Background and Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of ethanolic extract of saffron on oxidative stress markers in the hippocampus of experimental models of MS. Materials and Methods: Induction of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) was carried out by direct single injection of 0.01 % ethidium bromide (EB) into the Cornu ammonis (CA1) of hippocampal formation. One week after MS induction, animals received intrahippocampal (5 μg/rat and 10 μg/rat) injection of the saffron. At the end, the bilateral hippocampi were dissected to measure oxidative stress parameters. one-way ANOVA followed by Tukey test were used for Statistical analyses activity. Results: Hippocampal injection of EB had no effect on catalase (CAT) activity, but it induced significant increment of antioxidant enzymes GPx and SOD (P<0.05). Short-term local injection of saffron extract significantly reduced the activity of GPx and SOD enzymes (P<0.05). But the activity of CAT was significantly increased following microinjection of saffron extract (P<0.05). Conclusion: The results of the present study show that the local injection of EB may cause increased production of free radicals. Antioxidant capacity and activity are increased. Saffron extract as a potent antioxidant modulates oxidative stress markers, probably through scavenging of ROS and clearing of cells milieu from free radicals.