scholarly journals Network Pharmacology Integrated with Molecular Docking Explores the Mechanisms of Naringin against Osteoporotic Fracture by Regulating Oxidative Stress

2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Xiang Yu ◽  
Peng Zhang ◽  
Kai Tang ◽  
Gengyang Shen ◽  
Honglin Chen ◽  
...  

Naringin (NG), as the most abundant component of Drynariae Rhizoma (Chinese name: Gusuibu), has been proved to be an antioxidant flavonoid on promoting osteoporotic fracture (OF) healing, but relevant research is scanty on the underlying mechanisms. We adopted target prediction, protein-protein interaction (PPI) analysis, Gene Ontology (GO) analysis, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis, and molecular docking to establish a system pharmacology database of NG against OF. Totally 105 targets of naringin were obtained, including 26 common targets with OF. A total of 415 entries were obtained through GO Biological Process enrichment analysis ( P < 0.05 ), and 37 entries were obtained through KEGG pathway enrichment analysis with seven signaling pathways included ( P < 0.05 ), which were primarily concerned with p53, IL-17, TNF, estrogen, and PPAR signaling pathways. According to the results of molecular docking, naringin is all bound in the active pockets of the core targets with 3–9 hydrogen bonds through some connections such as hydrophobic interactions, Pi-Pi stacked interactions, and salt bridge, demonstrating that naringin binds tightly to the core targets. In general, naringin may treat OF through multiple targets and multiple pathways via regulating oxidative stress, etc. Notably, it is first reported that NG may regulate osteoclast differentiation and oxidative stress through the expression of the core targets so as to treat OF.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yi Pan ◽  
Wanlu Zhao ◽  
Luping Qin ◽  
Lu Zhang

Abstract Background: Youguiyin (YGY) has been confirmed to treat osteoporosis (OP) in clinical trials, but its specific pharmacological mechanism remains unclear. This study aimed to explore the material basis and potential mechanism of YGY in the treatment of OP based on network pharmacology and molecular docking.Methods: Databases including TCMSP, SwissTargetPrediction database, OMIM, and TTD were used to predict the effective ingredients and relevant targets of YGY in the treatment of OP. The STRING database was used to reveal the relationship between each intersection target protein. Metascape database was used to perform GO enrichment analysis and KEGG pathway enrichment analysis on the intersection targets. Cytoscape 3.6.0 software was used to show the complex network relationship of YGY in the treatment of OP. According to the results of network characteristics analysis, the core effective ingredients and the core targets were screened out. Autodock 4.0 was used for molecular docking and Pymol was used to visualize the docking results.Results: 290 effective ingredients, 1127 targets of the effective ingredients, 273 relevant targets of OP and 17 intersection targets were screened out in total by searching literature and databases. Intersection targets could affect biological processes including regulation of inflammatory response, ossification, negative regulation of post-transcriptional gene silencing, positive regulation of cytokine biosynthetic process and regulation of hormone levels by regulating signal pathways including TNF signaling pathway, osteoclast differentiation, apoptosis, MAPK signaling pathway and PI3K/Akt signaling pathway. Through screening, 14 core effective ingredients and 6 core targets were confirmed. The results of molecular docking showed that most of the core effective ingredients including α-humulene, cinnamaldehyde, denudatine, benzoylhypaconine and quercetin had good binding activity with the core targets including TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-6.Conclusion: Based on network pharmacology and molecular docking, the critical effective ingredients, key targets, important signal pathways and main biological processes of YGY in the treatment of OP were successfully screened out. This study revealed the material basis and the mechanism of YGY in the treatment of OP and provided a theoretical basis for follow-up experimental research and clinical application of YGY.


Author(s):  
Rong Zhao ◽  
Meng-Meng Zhang ◽  
Dan Wang ◽  
Wei Peng ◽  
Qing Zhang ◽  
...  

Background: Zanthoxylum bungeanum Maxim., a traditional Chinese herbal medicine, has been reported to possess therapeutic effects on diseases induced by oxidative stress (DOS), such as atherosclerosis and diabetes complication. However, the active components and its related mechanisms are still not systematically reported. Objective: The current study was aimed to explore the main active ingredients and its molecular mechanisms of Z. bungeanum for treating DOS using network pharmacology combined with molecular docking simulation. Methods: The active components of Z. bungeanum pericarps, in addition to the interacting targets, were identified from the Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology (TCMSP) database. These components were filtered using the parameters of oral bioavailability and drug-likeness, and the targets related to DOS were obtained from the Genecards and OMIM database. Furthermore, the overlapping genes were obtained, and a protein-protein interaction was visualized using the STRING database. Next, the Cytoscape software was employed to build a disease/drug/component/target network, and Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis were performed using R software. Finally, the potential active compounds and their related targets were validated using molecular docking technology. Results: A total of 61 active compounds, 280 intersection genes, and 105 signaling pathways were obtained. Functional enrichment analysis suggested that DOS occurs possibly through the regulation of many biological pathways, such as AGERAGE and HIF-1 signaling pathways. Thirty of the identical target genes showed obvious compact relationships with others in the STRING analysis. Three active compounds, quercetin, diosmetin, and beta-sitosterol, interacting with the four key targets, exhibited strong affinities. Conclusion: The findings of this study not only indicate the main mechanisms involving in the oxidative stress-induced diseases, but also provide the basis for further research on the active components of Z. bungeanum for treating DOS.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yi Pan ◽  
Wanlu Zhao ◽  
Luping Qin ◽  
Lu Zhang

Abstract Background: Youguiyin (YGY) has been confirmed to treat osteoporosis (OP) in clinical trials, but its specific pharmacological mechanism remains unclear. This study aimed to explore the material basis and potential mechanism of YGY in the treatment of OP based on network pharmacology and molecular docking.Methods: Databases including TCMSP, SwissTargetPrediction database, OMIM, and TTD were used to predict the effective ingredients and relevant targets of YGY in the treatment of OP. The STRING database was used to reveal the relationship between each intersection target protein. Metascape database was used to perform GO enrichment analysis and KEGG pathway enrichment analysis on the intersection targets. Cytoscape 3.6.0 software was used to show the complex network relationship of YGY in the treatment of OP. According to the results of network characteristics analysis, the core effective ingredients and the core targets were screened out. Autodock 4.0 was used for molecular docking and Pymol was used to visualize the docking results.Results: 290 effective ingredients, 1127 targets of the effective ingredients, 273 relevant targets of OP and 17 intersection targets were screened out in total by searching literature and databases. Intersection targets could affect biological processes including regulation of inflammatory response, ossification, negative regulation of post-transcriptional gene silencing, positive regulation of cytokine biosynthetic process and regulation of hormone levels by regulating signal pathways including TNF signaling pathway, osteoclast differentiation, apoptosis, MAPK signaling pathway and PI3K/Akt signaling pathway. Through screening, 14 core effective ingredients and 6 core targets were confirmed. The results of molecular docking showed that most of the core effective ingredients including α-humulene, cinnamaldehyde, denudatine, benzoylhypaconine and quercetin had good binding activity with the core targets including TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-6.Conclusion: Based on network pharmacology and molecular docking, the critical effective ingredients, key targets, important signal pathways and main biological processes of YGY in the treatment of OP were successfully screened out. This study revealed the material basis and the mechanism of YGY in the treatment of OP and provided a theoretical basis for follow-up experimental research and clinical application of YGY.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Youzi Dong ◽  
Quanlin Zhao

Abstract Through network pharmacology and molecular docking to explore the mechanism of astragalus-angelica compound in the treatment of diabetic nephropathy (DN). Screen the components and targets of astragalus and angelica compound on the TCMSP and the BATMAN-TCM, and use Cytoscape 3.7.2 to establish a component-target interaction network. Relevant targets of DN were searched through related databases, and the common targets of astragalus-angelica compound prescription and DN were obtained after comparison. The target protein interaction analysis and visualization processing were performed, and gene ontology (GO) analysis and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Gene and Genome (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis were performed through David database, and molecular docking was performed using PyMoL and AutoDock Vina software. Through network pharmacology screening, 142 main targets of astragalus-angelica compound in the treatment of DN have been identified. KEGG pathway enrichment analysis shows that the above key targets are related to apoptosis, oxidative stress, inflammation, insulin resistance and other related pathways. Molecular docking shows that the target protein has a good combination with the main active ingredients of astragalus-angelica compound. Astragalus-angelica compound may act on VEGFA, TP53, IL-6, TNF, mark1 and other targets to treat DN by regulating apoptosis, oxidative stress, inflammation, glucose and lipid metabolism and other pathways. Research methods based on network pharmacology and molecular docking provide new ideas for the pathogenesis and treatment of DN.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Youzi Dong ◽  
Quanlin Zhao ◽  
Yuguo Wang

AbstractTo explore the mechanism of the Astragalus membranaceous (AM)-Angelica sinensis (AS) compound in the treatment of diabetic nephropathy (DN) we used network pharmacology and molecular docking. Screen the components and targets of the AM-AS compound in the TCMSP and the BATMAN-TCM, and establish a component-target interaction network by Cytoscape 3.7.2. After searching relevant targets of DN in related databases, the common targets of the AM-AS compound and DN were obtained by comparison. Gene ontology (GO) analysis and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Gene and Genome (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis were performed through David database. Molecular docking was performed by PyMoL2.3.0 and AutoDock Vina software. After screening, 142 main targets of the AM-AS compound in the treatment of DN have been identified. Target network was established and the topology of PPI network was analyzed. KEGG pathway enrichment analysis shows that these targets are related to apoptosis, oxidative stress, inflammation, insulin resistance, etc. Molecular docking shows that the target proteins have good combinations with the main active components of the AM-AS compound. AM-AS compound may treat DN by acting on VEGFA, TP53, IL-6, TNF, MARK1, etc., and regulate apoptosis, oxidative stress, inflammation, glucose, and lipid metabolism processes. The in vivo study results suggest that AM-AS compound can significantly reduce the FBG level of diabetic rats, increase the level of INS, improve renal functions, reduce urinary proteins, inhibit glycogen deposition, granulocyte infiltration and collagen fiber proliferation in renal tissue, and restrain the progress of DN. In vivo study combined with network pharmacology and molecular docking methods provides new ideas for the pathogenesis and treatments of DN.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Minglong Guan ◽  
Lan Guo ◽  
Hengli Ma ◽  
Huimei Wu ◽  
Xiaoyun Fan

Rosmarinic acid (RosA) is a natural phenolic acid compound, which is mainly extracted from Labiatae and Arnebia. At present, there is no systematic analysis of its mechanism. Therefore, we used the method of network pharmacology to analyze the mechanism of RosA. In our study, PubChem database was used to search for the chemical formula and the Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS) number of RosA. Then, the Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology Database and Analysis Platform (TCMSP) was used to evaluate the pharmacodynamics of RosA, and the Comparative Toxicogenomics Database (CTD) was used to identify the potential target genes of RosA. In addition, the Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment analysis and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis of target genes were carried out by using the web-based gene set analysis toolkit (WebGestalt). At the same time, we uploaded the targets to the STRING database to obtain the protein interaction network. Then, we carried out a molecular docking about targets and RosA. Finally, we used Cytoscape to establish a visual protein-protein interaction network and drug-target-pathway network and analyze these networks. Our data showed that RosA has good biological activity and drug utilization. There are 55 target genes that have been identified. Then, the bioinformatics analysis and network analysis found that these target genes are closely related to inflammatory response, tumor occurrence and development, and other biological processes. These results demonstrated that RosA can act on a variety of proteins and pathways to form a systematic pharmacological network, which has good value in drug development and utilization.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xi Cen ◽  
Yan Wang ◽  
LeiLei Zhang ◽  
XiaoXiao Xue ◽  
Yan Wang ◽  
...  

Abstract BackgroundType 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is regarded as Pi Dan disease in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Dahuang Huanglian Xiexin Decoction (DHXD), a classical TCM formula, has been used for treating Pi Dan disease in clinic, its pharmacological mechanism has not been elucidated. MethodsThis study used network pharmacological analysis and molecular docking approach to explore the mechanism of DHXD on T2DM. Firstly, the compounds in DHXD were obtained from TCMSP and TCMID databases, the potential targets were determined based on TCMSP and UniProt databases. Next, Genecards, Digenet and UniProt databases were used to identify the targets of T2DM. Then, the protein-protein interaction (PPI) network was established with overlapping genes of T2DM and compounds, and the core targets in the network were identified and analyzed. Then, the David database was used for GO and KEGG enrichment analysis. Finally, the target genes were selected and the molecular docking was completed by Autodock software to observe the binding level of active components with target genes.ResultsA total of 397 related components and 128 overlapping genes were identified. After enrichment analysis, it was found that HIF-1, TNF, IL-17 and other signaling pathways, as well as DNA transcription, gene expression, apoptosis and other cellular biological processes had the strongest correlation with the treatment of T2DM by DHXD, and most of them occurred in the extracellular space, plasma membrane and other places, which were related to enzyme binding and protein binding. In addition, 42 core genes of DHXD, such as VEGFA, TP53 and MAPK1, were considered as potential therapeutic targets, indicating the potential mechanism of DHXD on T2DM. Finally, the results of molecular docking showed that HIF-1 pathway had strong correlation with the target genes INSR and GLUT4, quercetin and berberine had the strongest binding power with them respectively.ConclusionThis study summarized the main components of DHXD in the treatment of T2DM, identified the core genes and pathways, and systematically analyzed the interaction of related targets, trying to lay the foundation for clarifying the potential mechanism of DHXD on T2DM, so as to carry out further research in the future.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Longchuan Wu ◽  
Yu Chen ◽  
Jiao Yi ◽  
Yi Zhuang ◽  
Lei Cui ◽  
...  

Objective. To explore the mechanism of action of Bu-Fei-Yi-Shen formula (BFYSF) in treating chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) based on network pharmacology analysis and molecular docking validation. Methods. First of all, the pharmacologically active ingredients and corresponding targets in BFYSF were mined by the Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology (TCMSP) database, the analysis platform, and literature review. Subsequently, the COPD-related targets (including the pathogenic targets and known therapeutic targets) were identified through the TTD, CTD, DisGeNet, and GeneCards databases. Thereafter, Cytoscape was employed to construct the candidate component-target network of BFYSF in the treatment of COPD. Moreover, the cytoHubba plug-in was utilized to calculate the topological parameters of nodes in the network; then, the core components and core targets of BFYSF in the treatment of COPD were extracted according to the degree value (greater than or equal to the median degree values for all nodes in the network) to construct the core network. Further, the Autodock vina software was adopted for molecular docking study on the core active ingredients and core targets, so as to verify the above-mentioned network pharmacology analysis results. Finally, the Omicshare database was applied in enrichment analysis of the biological functions of core targets and the involved signaling pathways. Results. In the core component-target network of BFYSF in treating COPD, there were 30 active ingredients and 37 core targets. Enrichment analysis suggested that these 37 core targets were mainly involved in the regulation of biological functions, such as response to biological and chemical stimuli, multiple cellular life processes, immunity, and metabolism. Besides, multiple pathways, including IL-17, Toll-like receptor (TLR), TNF, and HIF-1, played certain roles in the effect of BFYSF on treating COPD. Conclusion. BFYSF can treat COPD through the multicomponent, multitarget, and multipathway synergistic network, which provides basic data for intensively exploring the mechanism of action of BFYSF in treating COPD.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-16
Author(s):  
Mengshi Tang ◽  
Xi Xie ◽  
Pengji Yi ◽  
Jin Kang ◽  
Jiafen Liao ◽  
...  

Objective. To explore the main components and unravel the potential mechanism of simiao pill (SM) on rheumatoid arthritis (RA) based on network pharmacological analysis and molecular docking. Methods. Related compounds were obtained from TCMSP and BATMAN-TCM database. Oral bioavailability and drug-likeness were then screened by using absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion (ADME) criteria. Additionally, target genes related to RA were acquired from GeneCards and OMIM database. Correlations about SM-RA, compounds-targets, and pathways-targets-compounds were visualized through Cytoscape 3.7.1. The protein-protein interaction (PPI) network was constructed by STRING. Gene Ontology (GO) analysis and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis were performed via R packages. Molecular docking analysis was constructed by the Molecular Operating Environment (MOE). Results. A total of 72 potential compounds and 77 associated targets of SM were identified. The compounds-targets network analysis indicated that the 6 compounds, including quercetin, kaempferol, baicalein, wogonin, beta-sitosterol, and eugenol, were linked to ≥10 target genes, and the 10 target genes (PTGS1, ESR1, AR, PGR, CHRM3, PPARG, CHRM2, BCL2, CASP3, and RELA) were core target genes in the network. Enrichment analysis indicated that PI3K-Akt, TNF, and IL-17 signaling pathway may be a critical signaling pathway in the network pharmacology. Molecular docking showed that quercetin, kaempferol, baicalein, and wogonin have good binding activity with IL6, VEGFA, EGFR, and NFKBIA targets. Conclusion. The integrative investigation based on bioinformatics/network topology strategy may elaborate on the multicomponent synergy mechanisms of SM against RA and provide the way out to develop new combination medicines for RA.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Xin Shen ◽  
Rui Yang ◽  
Jianpeng An ◽  
Xia Zhong

Prunella vulgaris (PV) has a long history of application in traditional Chinese and Western medicine as a remedy for the treatment of subacute thyroiditis (SAT). This study applied network pharmacology to elucidate the mechanism of the effects of PV against SAT. Components of the potential therapeutic targets of PV and SAT-related targets were retrieved from databases. To construct a protein-protein interaction (PPI) network, the intersection of SAT-related targets and PV-related targets was input into the STRING platform. Gene ontology (GO) analysis and KEGG pathway enrichment analysis were carried out using the DAVID database. Networks were constructed by Cytoscape for visualization. The results showed that a total of 11 compounds were identified according to the pharmacokinetic parameters of ADME. A total of 126 PV-related targets and 2207 SAT-related targets were collected, and 83 overlapping targets were subsequently obtained. The results of the KEGG pathway and compound-target-pathway (C-T-P) network analysis suggested that the anti-SAT effect of PV mainly occurs through quercetin, luteolin, kaempferol, and beta-sitosterol and is most closely associated with their regulation of inflammation and apoptosis by targeting the PIK3CG, MAPK1, MAPK14, TNF, and PTGS2 proteins and the PI3K-Akt and TNF signaling pathways. The study demonstrated that quercetin, luteolin, kaempferol, and beta-sitosterol in PV may play a major role in the treatment of SAT, which was associated with the regulation of inflammation and apoptosis, by targeting the PI3K-Akt and TNF signaling pathways.


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