Plant collection and extraction

B. vulgaris fruit purchased from a reputable herbal grocery, was evaluated by a plant biologist and recorded at herbarium unit of Medical Plants Research Center of Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences (Shahrekord, Iran) with the accession Code 419. Aqueous ethanol (70:30) extract of Berberis fruit was prepared using cold maceration process. The grounded plant material (2 kg) was soaked in 5 l of water-ethanol mixture (70:30) for 72 hr at room temperature. After three days of occasional shaking, the whole material was filtered and the filtrate evaporated under reduced pressure using rotary evaporator. The contents were filtered and the solvent was isolated by a Rotary concentrator at 37°C (IKA^®RV 10 digital). The concentrated solution was incubated at 37°C until it was dried. The crude extract was then air-dried to obtain a solid mass. The yield of extract was 30%. Then, the obtained solution was collected from containers and kept in the refrigerator at 4 °C.