Abstract
Background Du Zhong (DZ), or Eucommiae Cortex, a traditional Chinese herbal medicine, has been used to treat osteoporosis. Although it has been reported that DZ can improve bone mass in ovariectomized rats, its pharmacological mechanisms in treating osteoporotic fractures (OPF) remain unclear. Methods In this study, we used a network pharmacological manner to explore its potential complicated mechanism in treating OPF. We obtained DZ compounds from TCMSP and BATMAN-TCM databases and collected potential targets of these compounds through target fishing based on TCMSP and BATMAN-TCM databases. Next, we collected the OPF targets by using CTD, GeneCards, OMIM, HPO, and GenCLiP 3 databases. And then the overlapping genes between DZ potential targets and OPF targets were used to build up the protein-protein interaction (PPI) network and to analyze their interactions and find out the big hub genes in this network. Subsequently, clusterProfiler package in R language was utilized to conduct the enrichment of Gene Ontology biological process and KEGG pathways. Results There were totally 93 active compounds and 916 related targets in DZ. After the enrichment analysis, we collected top 25 cellular biological processes and top 25 pathways based on the adjusted P value and found that the DZ anti-OPF effect was mainly associated with the regulation of ROS and inflammatory response. Furthermore, 64 hub genes in PPI network, such as MAPK1 (degree = 41), SRC (degree = 39), PIK3R1 (degree = 36), VEGFA (degree = 31), TP53 (degree = 29), EGFR (degree = 29), JUN (degree = 29), AGT (degree = 29), MAPK1, SRC, PIK3R1, VEGFA, and TP53, were considered as potential therapeutic targets, implying the underlying mechanisms of DZ acting on OPF. Conclusion We investigated the possible therapeutic mechanisms of DZ from a systemic perspective. These key targets and pathways provided promising directions for the future research to reveal the exact regulating mechanisms of DZ in treating OPF.
Highlights
Osteoporosis is a systemic bone disorder characterized by low bone density, poor bone quality, reduced bone strength, and an accompanying increased incidence of fractures [1].e latest study noted that over 10 million people suffer from osteoporosis in the United States
A total of 147 related compounds were found in Du Zhong (DZ) collected from the TCMSP database, and of these, 27 candidate compounds remained after the screening of ADME thresholds (OB ≥ 30%, DL ≥ 0.18)
We integrated the osteoporotic fractures (OPF) genes that were obtained from multisource databases, including the CTD, GeneCards, OMIM, HPO, GenCLiP 3 databases, and a total of 3,834 related genes were collected
Summary
Osteoporosis is a systemic bone disorder characterized by low bone density, poor bone quality, reduced bone strength, and an accompanying increased incidence of fractures [1].e latest study noted that over 10 million people suffer from osteoporosis in the United States. Osteoporotic fractures (OPF) have serious consequences, such as declining functions and independence as well as increased morbidity and mortality [3, 4]. We collected top 25 cellular biological processes and top 25 pathways based on the adjusted P value and found that the DZ anti-OPF effect was mainly associated with the regulation of ROS and inflammatory response. 64 hub genes in PPI network, such as MAPK1 (degree 41), SRC (degree 39), PIK3R1 (degree 36), VEGFA (degree 31), TP53 (degree 29), EGFR (degree 29), JUN (degree 29), AGT (degree 29), MAPK1, SRC, PIK3R1, VEGFA, and TP53, were considered as potential therapeutic targets, implying the underlying mechanisms of DZ acting on OPF. We investigated the possible therapeutic mechanisms of DZ from a systemic perspective. ese key targets and pathways provided promising directions for the future research to reveal the exact regulating mechanisms of DZ in treating OPF
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