Nephrotic syndrome (NS) is a common urinary system disease that carries a poor progrnosis due to nonresponsivess to current treatments. The purpose of this study was to investigate the therapeutic effects of Forsythiaside (FA) in a rat model of adriamycin-induced nephropathy (AN). Compared with control group, FA treatment significantly reduced proteinuria, serum creatinine and urea nitrogen levels and reduced the number of apoptotic cells in the kidneys. FA alleviated Adr induced renal injury, and increased the sactivity of superoxide dismutase (SOD), while decreasing malondialdehyde (MDA) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) in the serum. In addition, FA, in a dose-dependent manner, decreased the levels of NF-kappaBp65/MIP-2 in the kidenys, reduced the serum level of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-6, IL-1 β and TNF-alpha), and increased the survival rate of Adr treated rats. Taken together, the results show that FA alleviates renal dysfunction in adriamycin-induced nephropathy rats.