Yu Chunlei, Yang Fan, Zou Yu, Zhang Yingbo, Pan Siwen
The Institute of Medicine, Qiqihar Medical University, Qiqihar City, Heilongjiang Province, China.
Clinical Pathological Diagnosis Center, Qiqihar Medical University, Qiqihar City, Heilongjiang Province, China.
Medicine (Baltimore). 2024 Dec 6;103(49):e40796. doi: 10.1097/MD.0000000000040796.
Chronic hepatitis (CH) refers to liver inflammation lasting at least 6 months caused by various factors, significantly impacting patients' daily lives. Paeoniae Radix Rubra (CS) is a classic blood-activating and stasis-dissolving herb known for its protective effects on the liver. This research seeks to investigate the underlying mechanisms by which CS treat CH, employing network pharmacology and molecular docking.
The active constituents of CS for CH treatment were identified through the TCMSP database. Targets associated with CH were gathered from GeneCards, the Therapeutic Target Database, and OMIM databases. The intersecting genes between these targets and the components of CS were considered potential therapeutic targets. Protein-protein interaction analysis was performed with the use of the STRING database and Cytoscape software, leading to the identification of core targets. These core targets underwent KEGG and GO enrichment analysis, and the top 10 pathways were chosen for building a drug-compound-target-pathway-disease' network. Finally, molecular docking was utilized to evaluate the binding affinities between the compounds and the core targets.
From the TCMSP database, 29 compounds were screened, and 101 potential intersection targets of CS for treating CH were identified. The protein-protein interaction network analysis revealed that the core targets included EGFR, HSP90AA1, SRC, TNF, ALB, ESR1, CASP3, PTGS2, ERBB2, and FGF2. Pathway analysis indicated that CS's treatment of CH is mainly associated with the pathway in cancer. Molecular docking results indicated that Paeoniflorin and Baicalin exhibited strong binding affinity with EGFR and HSP90AA1.
This research uncovers the possible mechanisms of CS in CH treatment, offering new avenues for future studies.
慢性肝炎（CH）是指由多种因素引起的持续至少6个月的肝脏炎症，对患者的日常生活有显著影响。赤芍（CS）是一种经典的活血化瘀草药，以其对肝脏的保护作用而闻名。本研究旨在通过网络药理学和分子对接研究CS治疗CH的潜在机制。
通过中药系统药理学数据库（TCMSP）鉴定CS治疗CH的活性成分。从基因卡片数据库（GeneCards）、治疗靶点数据库（Therapeutic Target Database）和在线孟德尔人类遗传数据库（OMIM）收集与CH相关的靶点。这些靶点与CS成分之间的交集基因被视为潜在的治疗靶点。使用STRING数据库和Cytoscape软件进行蛋白质-蛋白质相互作用分析，以确定核心靶点。对这些核心靶点进行京都基因与基因组百科全书（KEGG）和基因本体（GO）富集分析，并选择前10条通路构建“药物-化合物-靶点-通路-疾病”网络。最后，利用分子对接评估化合物与核心靶点之间的结合亲和力。
从TCMSP数据库中筛选出29种化合物，确定了101个CS治疗CH的潜在交集靶点。蛋白质-蛋白质相互作用网络分析显示，核心靶点包括表皮生长因子受体（EGFR）、热休克蛋白90α家族成员1（HSP90AA1）、原癌基因酪氨酸蛋白激酶（SRC）、肿瘤坏死因子（TNF）、白蛋白（ALB）、雌激素受体1（ESR1）、半胱天冬酶3（CASP3）、前列腺素内过氧化物合酶2（PTGS2）、表皮生长因子受体2（ERBB2）和成纤维细胞生长因子2（FGF2）。通路分析表明，CS治疗CH主要与癌症通路相关。分子对接结果表明，芍药苷和黄芩苷与EGFR和HSP90AA1表现出很强的结合亲和力。
本研究揭示了CS治疗CH的可能机制，为未来的研究提供了新的途径。
