In the present study, the purpose was to investigate the effect of p-coumaric acid on the mRNA-expression levels of inflammatory cytokines, transcription factor, MAP kinases, and apoptotic proteins by real time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction in the cardiac tissue of sodium arsenite exposed rats. Sodium arsenite administration (5 mg/kg/b.wt, once daily for 30 days) upregulated the mRNA-expression levels of inflammatory cytokines (interleukin-1 beta, interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, and tumor growth factor-beta), transcription factor (NF-Kb-Rel A), protein kinases (Janus kinase and p38), caspase 3, and proapoptotic protein Bax in the cardiac tissue of rats, but the antiapoptotic protein Bcl-2 mRNA expression was found be downregulated. However, p-coumaric acid (75, 100 mg/kg/b. wt. oral) pretreatment daily before the sodium arsenite exposure protected the changes in the above mRNA-expression profiles observed in the cardiac tissues. In conclusion, this study confirmed that p-coumaric acid could be a promising dietary agent for protecting against the sodium arsenite-induced cardiotoxicity. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.