Oral administration of indigo naturalis (IN) can induce remission in ulcerative colitis (UC); however, the underlying mechanism remains unknown. The main active components and targets of IN were obtained by searching three traditional Chinese medicine network databases such as TCMSP and five Targets fishing databases such as PharmMapper. UC disease targets were obtained from three disease databases such as DrugBank,combined with four GEO gene chips. IN-UC targets were identified by matching the two. A protein–protein interaction network was constructed, and the core targets were screened according to the topological structure. GO and KEGG enrichment analysis and bioGPS localization were performed,and an Herbs-Components-Targets network, a Compound Targets-Organs location network, and a Core Targets-Signal Pathways network were established. Molecular docking technology was used to verify the main compounds-targets. Ten core active components and 184 compound targets of IN-UC, of which 43 were core targets, were enriched and analyzed by bioGPS, GO, and KEGG. The therapeutic effect of IN on UC may involve activation of systemic immunity, which is involved in the regulation of nuclear transcription, protein phosphorylation, cytokine activity, reactive oxygen metabolism, epithelial cell proliferation, and cell apoptosis through Th17 cell differentiation, the Jak-STAT and IL-17 signaling pathways, toll-like and NOD-like receptors, and other cellular and innate immune signaling pathways. The molecular mechanism underlying the effect of IN on inducing UC remission was predicted using a network pharmacology method, thereby providing a theoretical basis for further study of the effective components and mechanism of IN in the treatment of UC.

Background/Objectives. This systematic review was conducted to investigate the association between pancreatitis and IBD. Methods. MEDLINE, Embase, and CENTRAL were systematically searched for correlative studies till 2 November 2019. RevMan5.3 was used to estimate relevance. Results. Three studies with 166008 participants were included. The risk of pancreatitis significantly increased in the patients with CD (OR, 3.40; 95% CI, 2.70-4.28; P<0.00001) and UC (OR, 2.49; 95% CI, 1.91-3.26; P<0.00001). Increased risks of CD (OR, 12.90; 95% CI, 5.15-32.50; P<0.00001) and UC (OR, 2.80; 95% CI, 1.00-7.86; P=0.05) were found in patients with chronic pancreatitis. As for patients with acute pancreatitis, there were significant association of CD (OR, 3.70; 95% CI, 1.90-7.60; P=0.0002), but were not UC. Conclusions. The evidence confirmed an association between pancreatitis and IBD. When pancreatitis patients have chronic diarrhea and mucus blood stool or IBD patients have repeated abdominal pain and weight loss, they should consult pancreatic and gastrointestinal specialists.

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