Exploring Piperine as a Potential Treatment for Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome: Insights from In-silico Docking Studies

Abstract

Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) is a multifaceted metabolic and hormonal condition that impacts women in their procreative ages, identified by ovarian dysfunction, hyperandrogenaemiaoverweight and insulin insensitivity.The piperine, an important alkaloid compound of black pepper has shown promise in modulating various physiological processes. In this work, employed computational docking studies to explore the potential of piperine as a treatment for PCOS. Utilizing computational methods, we analyzed the binding interactions between piperine and key molecular targets implicated in PCOS pathogenesis, including hyperandrogenism, and "oligomenorrhea. The network pharmacology analysis report found 988 PCOS-related genes, 108 hyperandrogenism-related genes, and 377 oligomenorrhea-related genes, and we finally shortlisted 5 common genes in PCOS, hyperandrogenism, and "oligomenorrhea": NR3C1, PPARG, FOS, CYP17A1, and H6PD. Our results reveal favorable binding affinities with PPARG (-8.34 Kcal/mol) and H6PD (-8.70 Kcal/mol) and interaction patterns, suggesting the potential of piperine to modulate these targets. Moreover, the reliabilityof the piperine-target interactions was revealed by molecular simulations studies. These findings support further experimental investigations to validate the therapeutic efficacy of piperine in PCOS management. The integration of computational approaches withexperimental studies has the potential to lay the groundwork for the creation of new therapies specifically targeting PCOS and related endocrine disorders.