Objective: The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of the organic extracts of Anthemis mauritiana (AM) Maire and Sennen (Asteraceae)flowers on the contractile responses of the rabbit and rat jejunums and its possible mechanisms.Methods: Soxhlet extraction with different successive solvents (petroleum ether, dichloromethane, ethyl acetate, and methanol) were prepared andevaluated by preliminary phytochemical test. Antispasmodic effects of the extracts were evaluated against spontaneous contractions of rabbit and ratjejunum contracted by carbachol and high K+ concentration.Results: The phytochemical screening analysis revealed that the extracts of AM flowers contain flavonoids and tannins with variable quantities.Petroleum ether and dichloromethane extracts showed the most relaxant effects in the rabbit jejunum at concentrations with IC50 value of 9.31±2.65 μg/mland 25.04±5.87 μg/ml respectively. Ethyl acetate showed a total inhibition at 1 mg/ml, but the methanol extract at 5 mg/ml. In contrast, the residualaqueous extract was a reverse activity. And also all extracts caused an inhibitory effect on both K+ (75 mM) and CCh (10−6 M )induced contractions inthe rat jejunum except aqueous fraction. The extracts that have antispasmodic activity induced a marked depression on cumulative concentrationresponsecurve for carbachol and CaCl2.Conclusions: The results indicate that the antispasmodic effect decreased with the polarity of the organic extracts, but the aqueous fraction hada reverse effect. These results explain and confirm the popular use of genus of this plant for the treatment of gastrointestinal disturbances, andencourage studies on new compounds, in order to obtain new antispasmodic agents.Keywords: Anthemis mauritiana, Organic extract, Antispasmodic, Smooth muscle.Â
