Systems Pharmacological Approach of Pulsatillae Radix on Treating Crohn's Disease

Abstract

In East Asian traditional medicine, Pulsatillae Radix (PR) is widely used to treat amoebic dysentery and renowned for its anti-inflammatory effects. This study aimed to confirm evidence regarding the potential therapeutic effect of PR on Crohn's disease using a system network level based in silico approach. Study results showed that the compounds in PR are highly connected to Crohn's disease related pathways, biological processes, and organs, and these findings were confirmed by compound-target network, target-pathway network, and gene ontology analysis. Most compounds in PR have been reported to possess anti-inflammatory, anticancer, and antioxidant effects, and we found that these compounds interact with multiple targets in a synergetic way. Furthermore, the mRNA expressions of genes targeted by PR are elevated significantly in immunity-related organ tissues, small intestine, and colon. Our results suggest that the anti-inflammatory and repair and immune system enhancing effects of PR might have therapeutic impact on Crohn's disease.