Endocarditis is a rare but serious infection following listeriosis. Ginseng extract has immunomodulatory effects. Regular exercise reduces the risk of chronic metabolic and cardiopulmonary diseases through its anti-inflammatory effects. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of ginseng extract against experimental endocarditis with Listeria monocytogenes in rats and the effect of aerobic exercise on improving its antimicrobial properties. For this purpose, 36 rats weighing 250±20 gr were randomly divided into six groups of 6, including sham, patient (receiving bacterial suspension), ampicillin treatment (15 mg/kg, s.c. for one month), ginseng treatment (0.025 mg/kg, i.p. for one month), aerobic exercise (60% of maximal oxygen consumption for one month) and ginseng+exercise (treated similarly to ginseng treatment and aerobic exercise groups). At the end of the study and after sacrifice, the levels of Total Antioxidant Capacity (TAC), Superoxide dismutase (SOD), Glutathione Peroxidase (GPx), and Paraoxonase-1 (PON-1), as well as the concentration of cardiac tissue cytokines including Interleukine-1 (IL-1), IL-6, IL-8, and TNF-α, were measured. Data were analyzed by ANOVA and Tukey post hoc test, and the significance level was considered as p<0.05. Tissue levels of antioxidants were significantly reduced in the patient group, while their levels were significantly increased in the ginseng+exercise group (p<0.05). On the other hand, tissue levels of IL-1, IL-6, IL-8, and TNF-α increased in the patient group, while their levels decreased significantly in the ginseng+exercise group (p<0.05). This study showed that hydro-alcoholic extract of ginseng along with aerobic exercise has a better effect than either of them alone against experimental endocarditis caused by listeria monocytogenesis.
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