Abstract: Objective To investigate the impact of apigenin(Api) on ovarian granulosa cell apoptosis in female rats.Methods Twenty adult female proestrus SD rats were selected and their granulosa cells were treated with primary cell culture.After adherence,the cells were randomly divided into four groups(control group,groups treated with 10^-4 M,10^-5 M,and 10^-6 M of Api).After the treatment,all ovarian granulosa cells were gathered and stained with heamatoxylin-eosin(HE) and acridine orange(AO) to observe the form of granulosa cell.Granulosa cell apoptosis rate was detected by methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium(MTT) assay and flowcytometry to observe the effect of Api on apoptosis of ovarian granulosa cell.Results The A values for the control,10^-4 M,10^-5 M,and 10^-6 M Api groups were 0.87±0.059,0.29±0.057,0.49±0.03,and 0.63±0.035,respectively,with significant differences between the treated and control group(P < 0.01 for all),indicating the decrease of granulosa cells and the increase of apoptosis.The rates of granulosa cell apoptosis for control,10^-4 M,10^-5 M,and 10^-6 M Api group were 3.63%±0.37%,36.37%±2.28%,34.67%±1.96%,and 30.92%±1.65%,respectively,with significant differences between the treated and control group(P < 0.01 for all),indicating the increase of granulosa cell apoptosis in experimental group.Conclusion Api can inhibit the proliferation and promote the apoptosis of ovarian granulosa cells.