PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Haider M. Mohammed AU - Munaf H. Abdulrazzaq AU - Saad A. Hussain TI - Effects of silibinin hemisuccinate on the intraocular pressure in normotensive rabbits DP - 2007 Sep 01 TA - Saudi Medical Journal PG - 1397--1401 VI - 28 IP - 9 4099 - http://smj.org.sa/content/28/9/1397.short 4100 - http://smj.org.sa/content/28/9/1397.full SO - Saudi Med J2007 Sep 01; 28 AB - OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effects of silibinin hemisuccinate on the normal intraocular pressure (IOP) in rabbits.METHODS: This study took place in the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, University of Baghdad during the period from January to June 2005. Twenty-five New Zealand white rabbits weighing 1.5-2.5 kg were used in this study. The effects of corneal instillation of various concentrations of silibinin hemisuccinate (0.5%, 0.75% and 1%) dissolved in arachis oil, on the normal intraocular pressure in rabbits were evaluated using indentation tonometry; in addition to the possible modulation of normal IOP-recovery time after intravenous infusion of 20% sodium chloride solution.RESULTS: The results showed that within 30 minutes of application, silibinin in various concentrations significantly reduces IOP in comparison to baseline values (p<0.05), with greater reduction being achieved with 0.75%. The effect of IOP reduction lasts 2-3 hours and proportionate to the concentration used. Moreover, remarkable delay in IOP recovery was observed after instillation of silibinin compared with the vehicle treated (arachis oil) animals, indicating interference with aqueous humor formation.CONCLUSION: The results obtained in this study provide experimental evidences for the effectiveness of silibinin in the reduction of IOP and possible modulation of its regulatory mechanisms.