Abstract: OBJECTIVE： To investigate the subchronic toxicity and teratogenicity of Radix Asparagi by repeated oral administration to rats orally. METHODS：The 90-day oral toxicity of the Radix Asparagi was detected by eighty Sprague-Dawley rats (half male and half female，65.4-94.0 g) and rats were administered with the doses of 2 000，4 000 and 8 000 mg/kg and negative control for consecutive 90 days to observe their general conditions， weight changes and food intake of animals， food utilization rates， and to conduct hematology，biochemical and pathological tests. In the traditional teratogenic test，22 pregnant female SD rats were used in each group，and the doses of 1 000，2 000 and 4 000 mg/kg body weight and negative control group (distilled water) were administered orally. The pregnant rats were sacrificed on the 20th day of pregnancy to examine the pregnancy status and fetal development， and to observe the appearance， the bone and the internal organs of the fetus for teratogenicity evaluation. RESULTS：No toxic symptoms and death occurred in the 90-day oral toxicity test，and no toxic damage was observed in the histopathological examination in the experimental group. In the teratogenicity test，the incidence of sternum hypoplasia was 21.49% and 26.32% in the low and medium dose group，respectively，which was significantly higher than that in the control group (6.25% ) (P<0.01)， and no other abnormalities were found. CONCLUSION： The no observed adverse effect level (NOAEL) in 90-day oral toxicity test was 8 000 mg/kg bw. In the teratogenicity study，there were no treatment-related effects observed and Radix Asparagi did not show teratogenic effect on SD rats.

Key words: Radix Asparagi, subchronic toxicity, 90-day oral toxicity test, teratogenicity test