Network medicine-based analysis of the hepatoprotective effects of Lour. on alcoholic liver disease in rats.

Alcoholic liver disease (ALD) is characterized by high morbidity and mortality, and mainly results from prolonged and excessive alcohol use. Lour. (. ), a well-known traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), has hepatoprotective properties. However, its ability to combat alcohol-induced liver injury has not been fully explored. The objective of this study was to investigate the hepatoprotective effects of .  in a rat model of alcohol-induced liver disease, thereby establishing a scientific foundation for the potential preventive use of .  in ALD. We established a Chinese liquor (Baijiu)-induced liver injury model in rats. Hematoxylin and eosin (HE) staining, in combination with biochemical tests, was used to evaluate the protective effects of .  on the liver. The integration of network medicine analysis with experimental validation was used to explore the hepatoprotective effects and potential mechanisms of .  in rats. Our findings showed that .  ameliorated alcohol-induced changes in body weight, liver index, hepatic steatosis, inflammation, blood lipid metabolism, and liver function in rats. Network proximity analysis was employed to identify 18 potentially active ingredients of .  for ALD treatment. These potentially active ingredients in the blood were further identified using mass spectrometry (MS). Our results showed that .  plays a hepatoprotective role by modulating the protein levels of estrogen receptor 1 (ESR1), anti-nuclear receptor subfamily 3 group C member 1 (NR3C1), interleukin 6 (IL-6), and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α). In conclusion, the results of the current study suggested that .  potentially exerts hepatoprotective effects on ALD in rats, possibly through regulating the protein levels of ESR1, NR3C1, IL-6, and TNF-α.