Determining Pharmacological Mechanisms of Chinese Incompatible Herbs Fuzi and Banxia in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: A Systems Pharmacology-Based Study.

Kaiwen Ni,Yaling Chen,Ruilin Chen,Xiaolu Cai,Linshui Zhou,Zhen Wang,Suqun Zheng,Akhilesh K Tamrakar

doi:10.1155/2020/8365603

Abstract

Aconiti Lateralis Radix Praeparata (Fuzi) and Pinelliae Rhizoma (Banxia) are among the 18 incompatible medications that are forbidden from use in one formulation. However, there is increasing evidence implying that this prohibition is not entirely correct. According to the theory of Chinese traditional medicine, they can be used for the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Thus, we analyzed the possible approaches for the treatment of COPD using network pharmacology. The active compounds of Fuzi and Banxia (FB) were collected, and their targets were identified. COPD-related targets were obtained by analyzing the differentially expressed genes between COPD patients and healthy individuals, which were expressed using a Venn diagram of COPD and FB. Protein-protein interaction data and network regarding COPD and drugs used were obtained. Gene ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway analysis were conducted. The gene-pathway network was constructed to screen the key target genes. In total, 34 active compounds and 47 targets of FB were identified; moreover, 7,153 differentially expressed genes were identified between COPD patients and healthy individuals. The functional annotations of target genes were found to be related to mechanisms such as transcription, cytosol, and protein binding; furthermore, 68 pathways including neuroactive ligand-receptor interaction, Kaposi sarcoma-associated herpesvirus infection, apoptosis, and measles were significantly enriched. FOS CASP3, VEGFA, ESR1, and PTGS2 were the core genes in the gene-pathway network of FB for the treatment of COPD. Our results indicated that the effect of FB against COPD may involve the regulation of immunological function through several specific biological processes and their corresponding pathways. This study demonstrates the application of network pharmacology in evaluating mechanisms of action and molecular targets of herb-opponents FB.

Highlights

As defined by the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) Reports 2020, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is characterized by persistent respiratory symptoms and airflow limitation ascribed to airway and/or alveolar abnormalities
According to GOLD, smoking cessation is essential in all COPD patients who continue to smoke, whereas bronchodilators, inhaled corticosteroids (ICS), and antiinflammatory agents are the primary drugs for COPD patients in stable conditions
Active Ingredient Screening. e chemical compositions of Fuzi and Banxia (FB) were identified from the Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology Database and Analysis Platform (TCMSP) [17]. en, we selected candidate compounds with standard oral bioavailability (OB) ≥ 30% and drug-likeness (DL) ≥ 0.18 [18]

Summary

Introduction

As defined by the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) Reports 2020, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is characterized by persistent respiratory symptoms and airflow limitation ascribed to airway and/or alveolar abnormalities. Current treatments are only able to slow the progression of COPD [1]. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has been shown to have potential therapeutic properties against COPD [2]. Chronic and progressive dyspnea are the main characteristic symptoms of COPD, and around a third of patients experience cough and sputum production. According to the theory of TCM, the dyspnea may imply depression of the Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine chest yang, while sputum production suggests phlegm stagnant. Ese characteristics mentioned belong to one syndrome called yang-deficiency-with-phlegm-stagnant, in TCM The elderly, the primary population of the disease, are often considered to have declination in the kidney yang. ese characteristics mentioned belong to one syndrome called yang-deficiency-with-phlegm-stagnant, in TCM

Methods

Results

Conclusion