Tran Minh Nhat, Baek Su-Jin, Jun Hyeong Joon, Lee Sanghun
Korean Medicine Data Division, Korea Institute of Oriental Medicine, Daejeon, Republic of Korea.
Korean Convergence Medical Science, University of Science and Technology, Daejeon, Republic of Korea.
Front Pharmacol. 2023 Aug 10;14:1187896. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2023.1187896. eCollection 2023.
Herbal medicines traditionally target organs for treatment based on medicinal properties, and this theory is widely used for prescriptions. However, the scientific evidence explaining how herbs act on specific organs by biological methods has been still limited. This study used bioinformatic tools to identify the target organ locations of Radix Achyranthis Bidentatae (RAB), a blood-activating herb that nourishes the liver and kidney, strengthens bones, and directs prescription to the lower body. RAB's active compounds and targets were collected and predicted using databases such as TCMSP, HIT2.0, and BATMAN-TCM. Next, the RAB's target list was analyzed based on two approaches to obtain target organ locations. DAVID and Gene ORGANizer enrichment-based approaches were used to enrich an entire gene list, and the BioGPS and HPA gene expression-based approaches were used to analyze the expression of core genes. RAB's targets were found to be involved in whole blood, blood components, and lymphatic organs across all four tools. Each tool indicated a particular aspect of RAB's target organ locations: DAVID-enriched genes showed a predominance in blood, liver, and kidneys; Gene ORGANizer showed the effect on low body parts as well as bones and joints; BioGPS and HPA showed high gene expression in bone marrow, lymphoid tissue, and smooth muscle. Our bioinformatics-based target organ location prediction can serve as a modern interpretation tool for the target organ location theory of traditional medicine. Future studies should predict therapeutic target organ locations in complex prescriptions rather than single herbs and conduct experiments to verify predictions.
传统上，草药根据药用特性针对特定器官进行治疗，这一理论在方剂中被广泛应用。然而，从生物学角度解释草药如何作用于特定器官的科学证据仍然有限。本研究使用生物信息学工具来确定牛膝（一种具有活血化瘀功效，滋养肝肾、强筋骨并引药下行至下半身的草药）的靶器官位置。通过中药系统药理学数据库与分析平台（TCMSP）、HIT2.0和中药综合数据库（BATMAN-TCM）等数据库收集并预测了牛膝的活性成分和靶点。接下来，基于两种方法分析牛膝的靶点列表以获得靶器官位置。基于DAVID和基因组织器（Gene ORGANizer）富集的方法用于富集整个基因列表，基于生物GPS（BioGPS）和人类蛋白质图谱（HPA）基因表达的方法用于分析核心基因的表达。在所有这四种工具中均发现牛膝的靶点涉及全血、血液成分和淋巴器官。每种工具都显示了牛膝靶器官位置的一个特定方面：DAVID富集的基因在血液、肝脏和肾脏中占优势；基因组织器显示对下半身以及骨骼和关节有影响；生物GPS和人类蛋白质图谱显示在骨髓、淋巴组织和平滑肌中有高基因表达。我们基于生物信息学的靶器官位置预测可作为传统医学靶器官位置理论的现代解释工具。未来的研究应预测复杂方剂而非单一草药的治疗靶器官位置，并进行实验以验证预测结果。
