Day 1 :
Keynote Forum
Bimal Roy Krishna
Touro University, USA
Keynote: Pain management: Therapeutic and non-therapeutic interventions
Time : 10:00-10:30
Biography:
Bimal Roy Krishna is currently Professor and Director of Pharmacology at the College of Osteopathic Medicine, Touro University in Nevada. He obtained a Bachelor of Science (First Class Honors) in Pharmacology and Physiology and a Doctor of Philosophy, Medicine (OB/GYN/Pharmacology) from Monash University in Australia. He also teaches for the Step 1 USMLE and COMLEX reviews for Kaplan Medical throughout the United States and in UAE, Europe, Saudi Arabia, India, Mexico and the Caribbean. He has been teaching online for Kaplan University for over seven years. He has contributed to numerous publications and is a Member of a number of organizations including Fellow-American College of Clinical Pharmacology. His research background is in Maternal and Neonatal Pharmacology, specifically looking at materno-fetal transfer utilizing the perfused human placental and cultured syncytiotrophoblast model. Complementary and Alternative Medicine is another area of his interest.
Abstract:
Pain management, an integral part of therapeutics and clinical medicine has evolved immensely over the years and now to a certain extent integrates prescribed and complementary and alternative medicine. The physiology and pathology of pain whether peripheral or central, involves nociception and transmission from the injured tissue-skin, muscle or viscera. Pain associated with trauma and terminal diseases requires aggressive control beyond the inhibition of the inflammatory mediators such as the prostaglandins; afferent fibers, spinal cord sensory cells and chemical mediators play a pivotal role. Pain management, which to a great extent is based on patient response and the pain scale, is associated with a Step-up approach relating to the type of pain and underlying pathophysiology. Traditionally, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs have been the mainstay of treatment. However, failure of Nonsteroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs (NSAID) to treat pain or more chronic conditions require a Step-up 1 approach which would then introduce the opioids which address central mechanisms and are also used to treat severe pain, particularly those associated with terminal illness and myocardial infarcts. The mechanisms of action of opioids are similar; however, they differ in pharmacokinetic parameters. Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) has now become a widely accepted approach to pain management either with prescribed medications or as an alternative. That fact remains that the mechanism of action and pharmacokinetic and parameters of these agents are not fully elucidated. This presentation addresses the use of both prescribed medications and CAM in pain management.
Keynote Forum
Solomon Habtemariam
University of Greenwich, UK
Keynote: The search for novel antidiabetic compounds of natural origin: Where are we now?
Time : 10:30-11:00
Biography:
Solomon Habtemariam has completed his PhD, two years of Post-doctoral Research (Strathclyde Institute for Drug Research) and four years of Lectureship at Strathclyde University. Since then, he has been a leader of researches on bioassays & natural products-based drug development at the University of Greenwich and Founder/Owner of Herbal Analysis Services. He is an Elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine, the Royal Society of Chemistry, the African Academic Institute and the African Academy of Sciences. He has published over 150 papers in peer reviewed journals and has been serving as an Academic Editor and Member of the Editorial Board for many journals.
Abstract:
Numerous studies indicate that diabetes cases along with its major risk factor, obesity, are increasing with an alarming rate of epidemic proportions. These two interlinked conditions alone are also expected to bankrupt the health care system of many countries in the next few decades. A breakthrough for diabetes is not expected in the very near future, and the exiting available therapeutic options are mainly designed to target glycemic control and/or management of the associated diseases including cardiovascular complications. Ironically, thousands of compounds are reported in the scientific literature every year with a promise for diabetes and obesity therapy. The various structural classes of natural products that we and other groups show efficacy in vitro and in vivo are staggeringly high. There is also an emerging concept of diabetes/obesity control by the so called ‘functional’ or ‘medicinal foods’. But, why then are we still not seeing a breakthrough in diabetes and/or obesity therapy by natural products? This lecture highlights the complexity of these diseases and principles of therapeutic options by natural products. It also assesses the various natural compounds that act through different mechanisms and some key hot therapeutic targets that gained interest in recent years.
- Workshops
Session Introduction
Kell Cannon
3D Communications, LLC, USA
Title: CHMP meetings: How to prepare for, manage and excel at these EU regulatory meetings
Biography:
Kell Cannon has an MBA degree and a BS degree in Microbiology and has more than 20 years of US and global lifecycle and pharmaceutical marketing expertise to 3D's clients. He uses his analytical and organizational skills to help clients identify the strengths and weaknesses in their data and define their competitive differentiation. He has developed rigorous processes to help clients analyze and prepare their regulatory submissions and FDA advisory committee presentations. This assistance enables companies to win approval, expedite product access, and achieve competitive reimbursement. He has held leading positions at Roche, Novartis, Ciba, and Merck in clinical trial strategy, label negotiations, brand positioning, and advocacy development.
Abstract:
Getting a product approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) can be daunting, especially for companies that have little experience with this unique and complex process. Within the EMA, the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) conducts a scientific data review and recommends whether or not the drug or biologic should receive marketing authorization. The CHMP holds meetings to get input and scientific advice to inform its decision and/or to discuss objections that might prevent or delay approval. For applicants, the goal is clear: get a positive majority vote for marketing authorization. However, multiple hurdles exist that can make preparing for these meetings quite challenging. Firstly, CHMP meetings are not public; they’re held behind closed doors, and even the applicant is not present for much of the discussion. The CHMP typically makes its own presentation to the regulatory or scientific experts before the applicant is allowed in the room. Thus, when applicants present their data and answer questions, they don’t know what has already been discussed. In addition, the applicant has only one hour to make a core presentation AND answer the panel’s questions. In addition, applicants are allowed only a very limited number of people in the room, meaning they have to face tough Q&A without much backup from internal or external experts. After the applicant’s hour is up, they are dismissed from the room; the ensuing deliberations and voting are private. With such a limited amount of time to state their case, applicants’ messages must be clear, compelling and memorable. Another major hurdle is the limited preparation timeline. While the applicant may have an early indication based on the Day 80 rapporteurs review or the Day 120 list of questions, the need for a CHMP meeting only becomes certain when they receive the Day 180 assessment. That leaves the applicant with one to three months to prepare a briefing document, core presentation, and answers to difficult questions. The information must be presented clearly and concisely to overcome CHMP objections within the very limited timeframe of one hour, and to ensure that the voting participants retain the information up until the vote. This presentation will walk you through how to prepare for, and manage, CHMP meetings to achieve a positive recommendation for your product. Learning objectives of this presentation will be as follows: understand the EMA review timeline; learn how to prepare for the four different types of CHMP meetings you may face (Expert Group meeting, Scientific Advisory Group (SAG) meeting, oral explanation, and PRAC meeting); be introduced to the technology and support needed to successfully manage Q&A in the meetings.
Biography:
Caroline Kersten is a partner with Leverage HR, where they focus on transitioning talented women to the top, and developing and implementing solutions to create diverse leadership teams (www.leveragehr.com). She has trained and coached countless women and consulted with some of the most notable Fortune 500/1000 organizations across the US and Europe. She has over 20 years of experience as a business strategy consultant and HR leader in (non-)profit organizations, and draws on a wide variety of skills and experiences when working with clients. She has lived and worked in the Netherlands, France, Belgium, and currently Germany.
Abstract:
CEOs consistently identify “having the talent I need to drive my business” as one of their top three imperatives. To achieve business goals, you need the best men and women leaders. While women represent over half the available talent pool, organizations struggle to retain and grow talented women. The key question is therefore: what is stopping women in your organization from moving into leadership roles and what can managers/leaders do about it? Reinforcing enablers? Yes! Reducing barriers? Absolutely! Plus one key element that is often overlooked: building trust. Building (gender) diverse teams requires more than respecting and valuing differences. It requires trust. Trust creates an environment where each individual feels uninhibited and can show his/her authentic self. Each individual will be stronger, and the team will be more effective and cohesive. It will create a strong foundation for all future diversity initiatives. Join me in this interactive session where I will — Highlight results of global research on enablers encouraging women to pursue leadership roles and barriers preventing women from taking on next level roles; create an understanding of why trust is required for any diversity initiative to be successful and show three tactical ways managers/leaders can build trust that is needed to unleash the power of diversity.
- Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry | Pharmacological Sciences| Bio-Pharmaceutics | Pharmaceutical Chemistry | Novel Drug Delivery Systems | Pharma Consulting & Services | Hospital Pharmacy | Bioinformatics
Location: Odenwald
Chair
Solomon Habtemariam
University of Greenwich, UK
Co-Chair
Anna Szemik-Hojniak
University of Wroclaw, Poland
Session Introduction
Djebbar Atmani
University of Bejaia, Algeria
Title: Plant phenolics as new therapeutic agents in the treatment of diabetes and inflammation
Biography:
Djebbar Atmani is a Senior Lecturer at the Faculty of Nature and Life Sciences, University of Bejaia (Algeria). He obtained his Master of Science Degree from California State University, Los Angeles (USA) in 1987 and his PhD from the University of Sétif (Algeria) in 2004. His research interest lies in natural products from medicinal plants. He has published more than 30 papers in high impact scientific journals, attended several seminars and symposia worldwide and supervised many Doctoral theses besides reviewing many high impact journals
Abstract:
Phytochemicals, including phenolic compounds present in many plants have received much attention in recent years due to their health benefits. This study was conducted to investigate the anti-diabetic and anti-inflammatory activities of Pistacia and Fraxinus angustifolia, two plants traditionally used in Algerian folk medicine. The results indicated that P. lentiscus and F. angustifolia extracts, exhibited a promising anti-diabetic activity in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats, by a significant reduction (55%) of blood glucose level, a result confirmed by the inhibition of alpha-amylase activity (65%). The results of the anti-inflammatory activity of P. lentiscus and F. angustifolia showed significant reduction of the paw edema induced by carrageenan. Furthermore, P. lentiscus extracts showed a significant reduction of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1β) in activated macrophages. Moreover, the extracts of F. angustifolia, significantly inhibited ear edema induced by single and multiple doses of 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol 13-acetate (TPA) and suppressed the cellular infiltration. In vivo, the vesicles loaded with the crude extract of F. angustifolia and especially penetration enhancer-containing vesicles (PEV) inhibited oxidative stress in human keratinocytes against H2O2 and attenuated edema and leukocyte infiltration by stimulating the repair of TPA-induced skin damage. Chromatographic and spectroscopic analysis allowed the identification of known and new phenolic compounds, some of which are endowed with biological activities.
Dina Atmani-Kilani
University of Bejaia, Algeria
Title: Anti-myeloperoxidase activity of Clematis flammula ethanolic extract in two animal models: Gastric ulcer and recto-colitis
Biography:
Atmani-Kilani Dina has obtained her BS Degree in Biology from the American University of Beirut, Lebanon, Master’s Degree in Biology from California State University, LA, USA and her PhD from the University of Bejaia, Algeria. Her teaching activities in the field of Molecular Biology and Genetics since 1990 in the University of Bejaia have provided her with a lot of experience. Furthermore, her implication in research in the field of medicinal plants with collaboration of her colleagues has allowed many PhD students to obtain their degrees and resulted in many international publications. As her conviction that medicinal plants research will lead to the development of novel drugs with better efficiency than synthetic medicines, she hopes that her contribution will be fruitful.
Abstract:
Gastric ulcer (GU) and recto colitis (RC) are prevalent diseases that can become chronic and fatal. Therapeutic strategies have to focus on the inflammatory character of both diseases, by reducing myeloperoxidase (MPO), an enzyme activated by infiltrated neutrophils. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) generated by this enzyme aggravate the ulcer symptoms. Clematis flammula (CF) leaves are widely used in Algeria to treat inflammatory-related disorders. The inhibition of this enzyme by CF ethanolic extract was tested in mice suffering from GC or RC, induced respectively by ethanol and intra-colon injection of acetic acid (3%). Our findings indicated that MPO activity was significantly (p<0.05) increased in ethanol-treated mice, indicating infiltration and activation of neutrophils in the acute ulcerated gastric mucosa, while pre-treatment with CF (25, 50, and 100 mg/kg) as well as the drug pantoprazole (40 mg /kg) led to a marked (pË‚0.05) decrease in MPO activity, compared to the control group with respective values of 16.06±4.13, 6.92±0.68, 6.13±0.74, and 65.40±9.67 U/g tissue, indicating that CF significantly repressed MPO activity at the site of inflammation (ulcer). On the other hand, concerning RC, the administration of CF ethanolic extract attenuated the MPO activity with 38.11±7.61, 25.85±4.39 and 14.35±7.50 U/g tissue at concentrations of 25, 50 and 100 mg/kg, respectively. The known anti-RC drug sulfasalazine (100 mg/kg) was significantly less effective (47.62±4.05 U/g of tissue) than the extract. Histologic analysis has confirmed our results, which validates the use of this plant for ulcer conditions especially for RC.
Sergey Suchkov
I.M. Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University, Russia
Title: Antibody-proteases as a novel biomarker and a unique target to suit translational tools to be applied for biodesign and bioengineering
Biography:
Sergey Suchkov received his MD from Astrakhan State Medical University. In 1985, he received his PhD from the I M Sechenov Moscow Medical Academy and in 2001, his Doctorship Degree at the Nat Institute of Immunology, Russia. From 1987 through 1989, he was a Senior Researcher, Koltzov Institute of Developmental Biology. From 1989 through 1995, he was a Head of the Lab of Clinical Immunology, Helmholtz Eye Research Institute in Moscow. From 1995 through 2004, he was the Chair of the Department of Clinical Immunology, Moscow Clinical Research Institute. He was an Exe Secretary-in-Chief of the Editorial Board of Biomedical Science, an international journal published jointly by the USSR Academy of Sciences and the Royal Society of Chemistry, UK. At present, he is a Chair at the Department for Personalized and Translational Medicine, I M Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University. He is a Member of the New York Academy of Sciences, USA; American Chemical Society (ACS), USA; American Heart Association (AHA), USA; EPMA (European Association for Predictive, Preventive and Personalized Medicine), Brussels, EU; ARVO (American Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology); ISER (International Society for Eye Research) and PMC (Personalized Medicine Coalition), Washington, USA.
Abstract:
Catalytic Abs (catAbs) is multivalent immunoglobulin (Igs) with a capacity to hydrolyze the antigenic (Ag) substrate. In this sense, proteolytic Abs (Ab-proteases) represents Abs to provide proteolytic effects. Abs against myelin basic protein/MBP with proteolytic activity exhibiting sequence-specific cleavage of MBP is of great value to monitor demyelination whilst in MS. The activity of Ab-proteases was first registered at the subclinical stages, 1–2 years prior to the clinical illness. The activity of the Ab-proteases revealed significant correlation with scales of demyelination and the disability of the patients as well. So, the activity of Ab-proteases and its dynamics tested would confirm a high subclinical and predictive (translational) value of the tools as applicable for personalized monitoring protocols. Of tremendous value are Ab-proteases directly affecting remodeling of tissues with multilevel architectonics, for instance, myelin. By changing sequence specificity, one may reach reduction of a density of the negative proteolytic effects within the myelin sheath and thus minimizing scales of demyelination. Ab-proteases can be programmed and re-programmed to suit the needs of the body metabolism or could be designed for the development of new catalysts with no natural counterparts. Further studies are needed to secure artificial or edited Ab-proteases as translational tools of the newest generation to diagnose, to monitor, to control and to treat and rehabilitate MS patients at clinical stages and to prevent the disorder at subclinical stages in persons-at-risks.
Kyonghee Son
University of Massachusetts Medical School, USA
Title: Prediction of drug toxicity associated with gene polymorphisms by predicting protein structures
Biography:
Abstract:
Inter-individual variations in the body's response and tolerance to drugs can be attributed to genetic polymorphisms, among others. A good example is dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase gene (DPYD) single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). DPYD encoding dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase (DPD) is the first rate-limiting enzyme in the catabolic pathway of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) and pyrimidines. A tolerable therapeutic dose of 5-FU for a DPD-normal patient can make a DPD-deficient patient intolerable. To save a patient's life and money, health professionals need a convenient and reliable way to find out a patient’s tolerance to 5-FU prior to clinical trials or 5-FU therapy. In this talk, I present a simple, easy and fast way to predict an individual’s intolerance to 5-FU using the secondary structure prediction programs, YASPIN, PSIPRED and JPred 3, freely available to anyone. These programs predict the DPD secondary structure with and without mutation(s) within DPYD, so that impact of the mutation-induced structural changes on functional sites of human DPD domains can be deduced. Among 11 SNPs analyzed as samples, two missense mutations, D949V (SNP A2846T) and C953S (SNP G2858C), in the DPD domain V are predicted to cause disruption of the domain core responsible for [4Fe-4S] clusters. Furthermore, a point mutation in a splicing region (14 G1A) in DPYD is predicted to produce truncated DPD mRNAs (exon 14 skipping) and disabled DPD proteins (missing 55 amino acids from D581 to N635) which cause a complete loss of DPD activity. SWISS-MODEL predicts significant change in the 3D structures of human DPD in the presence of exon 14 skipping, D949V and C953S mutation. Thus, prediction by these secondary structure prediction programs provides useful and reliable information about toxicity associated 5-FU due to mutation (s) in DPYD.
Masaki Otagiri
Sojo University, Japan
Title: Study of structural-chemistry of sodium 4-phenylbutyrate on its binding to serum albumin
Biography:
Masaki Otagiri is currently a Professor and Dean of Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sojo University. He graduated from Nagoya City University with a PhD Degree in 1975. In 1980, he joined the Pharmaceutics Department of Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kumamoto University as an Associate Professor and then promoted to Professor of Biopharmaceutics Department, Kumamoto University in 1983. After his retirement from Kumamoto University in 2009, he was appointed as Professor of Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sojo University, Kumamoto, Japan.
Abstract:
Sodium 4-phenylbutyrate (PB) is phenyl-substituted fatty acid derivative that is clinically used for the treatment of urea cycle disorders by its ammonium scavenging activity. PB has also other pharmacological activities such as an inhibitor of endoplasmic reticulum stress and histone deacetylases. However, the binding of PB to plasma protein is not fully understood. Thus, we investigate the binding of PB to plasma protein in detail. Binding experiments showed that PB mainly binds to human serum albumin (HSA) with a single high affinity site, site 2. Moreover, the hydrophobic and electrostatic interactions play an important role on the binding based on structure-activity relationship and thermodynamic analysis. In addition, Tyr411 and Arg410 were involved in the binding of PB to site 2, from the binding experiments using chemically modified HSAs and mutant HSAs. These findings were confirmed by X-ray crystallographic analysis: the carboxylate group of PB hydrogen-bonded to Arg410, Tyr411 and Ser489, and the alkyl chain, including the phenyl group of PB, occupies the hydrophobic cavity of drug site 2. Next, we examined binding properties of PB to mammalian serum albumin. PB was also found to interact with one high affinity site, which corresponds to site 2 of HSA and several number of low affinity binding sites in all albumins. The affinities of PB to human and bovine albumins were higher than those to rabbit and rat albumin, and that to rabbit was the lowest. Binding and molecular docking studies using structurally related compounds of PB suggested that species differences in the affinity are attributed to differences in the structural feature of PB-binding sites on albumins (e.g. charge distribution, hydrophobicity, shape, or size). The findings presented herewith will be useful for understanding the pharmacokinetics and the pharmacological effects of PB.
Yasin I Tayem
Arabian Gulf University, Bahrain Networking and
Title: Awareness of drug interactions among physicians at governmental health centres in Bahrain
Biography:
Yasin I Tayem completed his MD from Al-Quds University School of Medicine, Palestine in 2001 and PhD in Clinical Sciences from the University of London, United Kingdom in 2006. From 2006 to 2013, he worked as an Assistant Professor of Pharmacology at the Al-Quds University School of Medicine. He has also been active in undertaking research, especially in collaboration with many international institutions including Mayo Clinic (USA), Gothenburg University (Sweden), Birmingham University (UK) and Kuwait University (Kuwait). From 2012 to 2013, he held the position of a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the National Institutes of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), Maryland, USA. Since 2013, he has been working as an Assistant Professor of Pharmacology and Therapeutics at the Arabian Guild University, Manama, Bahrain.
Abstract:
Statement of the Problem: Drug-drug interactions (DDIs) represent a significant cause of patient’s morbidity and mortality. The rate of DDIs is rapidly increasing worldwide with the increasing proportion of ageing population and frequent requirement of polypharmacy prescription of multiple drugs to treat comorbidities. Prescribing physicians are responsible for checking their prescriptions for the presence and severity of DDIs. However, since a large number of new drugs are approved and marketed every year, new interactions between medications are increasingly reported. Consequently, it is no longer practical for physicians to rely only upon their previous knowledge of medicine to avoid potential DDIs. The aim of this study is to explore the perceptions of physicians working at primary healthcare centres in Bahrain towards DDIs and how they manage them during their practice.
Methodology & Theoretical Orientation: In this cross-sectional study, physicians working at all governmental primary healthcare centres in Bahrain were invited to voluntarily, privately and anonymously respond to a self-administered questionnaire. The questionnaire aimed to assess their self-reported knowledge of DDIs and how they check for them in their practice. The participants were requested to provide socio demographic data and information related to their attitudes towards DDIs including strategies they employ for detecting and managing them, and their awareness of drugs which commonly cause DDIs. At the end of the questionnaire, an open-ended item was added to allow participants to further add any comments.
Findings: The study is going on currently and the results will be presented in the conference.
Conclusion & Significance: The conclusions will be presented in the conference since the study is still going on.
Nuriye Korkmaz
Karadeniz Technical University, Turkey
Title: The wound healing activity of Pilosella hoppeana subsp. testimonialis in rats
Biography:
Nuriye Korkmaz has her expertise in Biochemistry and Phytoteraphy studying enyzme activities, isolations, HPLC analysis, in vivo and in vitro studies on wound healing and anti obesity mechanisms.
Abstract:
Traditional uses of plants are guiding the development of new drugs. Determining the biological activity of plants which have been popularly used for many years and the identification of effective compounds in plants are essential factors in drug development. While wound healing is a normal biological process in the human body, non-healing wounds are an important global health care problem. Plants belonging to the family Asteraceae exhibit antioxidant, wound healing, antibacterial, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, antitumor, antiseptic effects. P. hoppeana is a folk medicinal plant known for its anti-inflammatory potential in Balıkesir for many years. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the wound healing activity of the methanolic extract of P. hoppeana, traditionally used in skin diseases, with its biological activity and antimicrobial properties and examine levels of TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-10 and MMP-9 in rat tissues. A circular excision wound was created by excising the skin in the dorsal interscapular region. Animals in the positive and experimental group were topically treated with Madecassol, and pomade prepared from the extract, respectively. At the end of the experiment, biological activity was studied, and PCR analyses were performed on skin samples. The antimicrobial activity of the methanol extract of the plant was also investigated. Rat groups treated with methanol extract and Madecassol exhibited wound contraction compared with the control group. Antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and hydroxyproline values were high in the extract group. Strong antimicrobial activity of the plant was observed. The plant exhibited its wound healing effect by increasing mRNA expression of TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-10 and MMP-9 genes. This study shows that P. hoppeana exhibits healing activity in a rat wound model. Considering all these results together, a drug with effective wound healing properties might be developed from the plant.
Sila Özlem Şener
Karadeniz Technical University, Turkey
Title: Antiobesity activity of some Cirsium species
Biography:
Sila Özlem Åžener has her expertise in Pharmacognosy and Phytoteraphy, studying enyzme activities, isolations, HPLC analysis, in vivo and in vitro studies on wound healing and anti obesity mechanisms.
Abstract:
Obesity is a serious and chronic health problem that is the basis of many diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, certain types of cancer, osteoarthritis and diabetes. Cirsium (Asteraceae) genus is represented by 67 species (79 taxa, 32 endemic) in Turkey. Cirsium genus have been used as anti-inflamatory, diuretics and venoactive remedies, traditionally. The goal of the present study is to evaluate antiobesity effect of the methanolic extracts of some Cirsium species in normal and high fat diet (HFD) induced obese rats. Male Spraque Dawley rats were divided into seven groups. HFD induced obese rats were treated with methanolic extract (200 mg/kg) and orlistat (5 mg/kg) orally, besides non-obese control group were treated with normal diet for eight weeks. At the end of the experimental duration, to interpret antiobesity activity, body weight was measured per week for eight weeks and serum samples were obtained for lipid profile analysis. Serum samples from rats were analyzed in terms of some biochemial parameters, low density lipoprotein (LDL), high density lipoprotein (HDL), triglycerides (TG), leptin and adiponectin. Oral administration of the extracts and positive control orlistat reduced body weight (p<0.005). Morever, the treatments resulted in increased serum HDL (p≤0.05) and adiponectin (p≤0.05); decreased in LDL (p≤0.05), TG (p≤0.05) and leptin (p≤0.05). According to results, the methanolic extracts of some Cirsium species displayed antiobesity activity. Thus, the Cirsium species can be a potential source of herbal medicine for obesity and its complications. Further investigations and human trials are required for understanding the therapeutic effects of Cirsium species for the global health problem.