Network pharmacology approach to determine active compounds and potential targets associated with the anti-abortion effects of scutellariae radix

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Abstract

Background: It is widely accepted that the causes and mechanisms of abortion are very complicated. In China, Scutellariae Radix (SR) (Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi) is widely used as a traditional Chinese herbal medicine with anti-abortion effects. However, the chemical components and pharmacologic profiles of SR have not been elucidated. The network pharmacology approach can provide a system-level perspective to explore the components, targets, and mechanism of herbal medicines. Thus, this approach was employed to identify the absorbable compounds, potential targets, and signaling pathways associated with SR. Materials and Methods: In this study, we used the Lipinski rule and an oral bioavailability of >30% to identify the bioactive compounds in SR. Targets of the anti-abortion activity of SR were obtained from the PharmMapper website server database. The Search Tool for the Retrieval of Interacting Genes and DAVID databases were utilized to perform protein-protein interaction analysis and pathway enrichment analysis, respectively. Finally, Cytoscape software was used to visualize the active compound-target-Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway network of SR. Results: In total, 286 chemical compounds were identified in SR; of these, 27 compounds could be absorbed into the blood, and 10 compounds that had a high docking score with their corresponding targets were determined. These potentially active compounds of SR regulated 142 targets and clearly affected 29 KEGG pathways. From these targets, a total of 11 targets, which were expressed in the breast and female reproductive system, were associated with the anti-abortion effects of SR: EGFR, HRAS, HSP90AA1, ESR1, PRKACA, SRC, GSK3B, JAK2, IGF1R, CDK2, and AR. In the KEGG pathway analysis, five pathways were related to the anti-abortion effect of SR, including the estrogen signaling pathway, the prolactin signaling pathway, progesterone-mediated oocyte maturation, and oocyte meiosis. Conclusions: The network pharmacology approach used in our study attempted to explain the mechanism of the anti-abortion effects of SR and has provided an alternative approach for the investigation of the effects of this complex compound.

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Ma, L., Lei, Q. L., & Su, Q. (2020). Network pharmacology approach to determine active compounds and potential targets associated with the anti-abortion effects of scutellariae radix. World Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine, 6(3), 341–352. https://doi.org/10.4103/wjtcm.wjtcm_35_20

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