Objective:To investigate the effect of Shenshao Decoction(参芍汤) on the inflammatory status in the aorta in a rat model of atherosclerosis.Methods:Forty Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into five groups,8 rats in each group:control untreated group,atherosclerosis group,atherosclerosis with Shenshao Decoction(low dose) group,atherosclerosis with Shenshao Decoction(high dose) group,atherosclerosis with simvastatin group.To stimulate atherosclerosis,the rats were fed vitamin D3 and a high-cholesterol diet.Four weeks later,treatments were maintained for eight weeks.Morphology changes were investigated by hematoxylin and eosin staining.Serum levels of total cholesterol(TC),triglycerides(TG),and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol(LDL-C) were obtained by enzymatic assays with use of an automated biochemical analyzer. The expression of malondialdehyde(MDA),glutathione peroxidase(GSH-PX) were detected by enzymelinked immunosorbent assay.The expression levels of interleukin(IL)-1β,IL-17A,and IL-23 were detected by immunoblotting.Results:Shenshao Decoction treatment decreased TC,TG,LDL-C and MDA and increased GSH-PX levels(P<0.01).Compared with the control group,IL-1β,IL-17A,and IL-23 were lower in the high and low dose Shenshao Decoction groups and the simvastatin group(P<0.01).Conclusion:Shenshao Decoction could attenuate the progression of aortal atherosclerotic plaques by inhibiting the inflammatory response in a rat atherosclerotic model. Objective: To investigate the effect of Shenshao Decoction on the inflammatory status in the aorta in a rat model of atherosclerosis. Methods: Forty Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into five groups, 8 rats in each group: control untreated atherosclerosis with Shenshao Decoction (high dose) group, atherosclerosis with Shenshao Decoction (high dose) group, atherosclerosis with Shevastatin Decoction (high dose) group, atherosclerosis with Shevastatin Decoction , treatments were maintained for eight weeks. Morphological changes were investigated by hematoxylin and eosin staining. Levels of total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL- of an automated biochemical analyzer. The expression of malondialdehyde (MDA), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-PX) were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Expression levels of interleukin (IL) , IL-17A, and IL-23 were detected by immunoblotting. Results: Shenshao Decoction treatment decreased TC, TG, LDL-C and MDA and increased GSH-PX levels (P <0.01) , IL-17A, and IL-23 were lower in the high and low dose Shenshao Decoction groups and the simvastatin group (P <0.01) .Conlusion: Shenshao Decoction could attenuate the progression of aortal atherosclerotic plaques by inhibiting the inflammatory response in a rat atherosclerotic model.