Network Pharmacology-Based Strategy for Predicting Active Ingredients and Potential Targets of Coptis chinensis Franchin Polycystic Ovary Syndrome

Abstract

Background. Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) causes low fertility in females. Coptis chinensis (C. chinensis) is used to clear heat and dampness, purify fire, and detoxify in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Although C. chinensis has demonstrated efficacy against PCOS in clinical practice, there are no available data regarding the bioactive components of C. chinensis, their targets, and molecular mechanisms underlying their effects. Methods and Results. Network pharmacology was used to analyze the bioactive components of C. chinensis, their targets, and signaling pathways underlying their effects. The TCM systems pharmacology database and analysis platform (TCMSP) was used to screen 14 effective active ingredients and 218 targets of C. chinensis. The GeneCards, OMIM, and PharmGkb databases were used to screen 3517 disease targets for PCOS, and 102 common targets of drugs and diseases were screened using R Cytoscape that was utilized to build a drug-active ingredient-disease target interaction network, and the STRING platform was utilized to construct a common target protein-protein interaction network, including 102 nodes and 221 edges. Key targets of C. chinensis for the treatment of PCOS included JUN, MAPK, IL6, CXCL8, FOS, and IL1B. A total of 123 gene ontology (GO) terms and 129 pathways were acquired by GO and KEGG enrichment analyses. The AGEs/RAGE, TNF, IL-17, MAPK, and HIF-1 signaling pathways were closely related to PCOS and may be the core pathways involved in PCOS. Schrodinger software was used to evaluate the interaction between active components and their targets and explore binding modes. Furthermore, based on the prediction of network pharmacology study, a mouse model of PCOS was established to evaluate the curative role and underlying mechanisms of C. chinensis. The results showed that C. chinensis treatment reversed histopathological damage of the ovary and also ameliorated the mRNA and protein expression levels of the predicted hub targets (MAPK1, CXCL8, IL-6, and IL-1β). These results indicated that WZYZP has a protective effect on spermatogenesis disorder, suggesting that it could be an alternative choice for male infertility therapy. Conclusions. This preliminary study verified the basic pharmacological effects and mechanisms of C. chinensis, a TCM, in the treatment of PCOS. These results indicate that the therapeutic effects of C. chinensis on PCOS may be achieved by regulating the expression of inflammatory factors. This study provides new insights for the systematic exploration of the mechanism of traditional Chinese medicine.

Transcriptome Profiling Revealed the Relationship Between Immune-Related Genes and m6A Modifiers in Polycystic Ovary Syndrome

“…And the mutilated function of gene FOS might re ect the adipose impairment tissue differentiation, proliferation, and role in adipose (54). Recently an analysis based on network pharmacological analysis determined that FOS was one of the central treatment targets (55). PTGS2 encoded cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2), the rate-limiting enzyme in the synthesis of prostaglandins(56).…”

Integrated Metabonomics and Network Pharmacology to Reveal the Action Mechanism Effect of Shaoyao Decoction on Ulcerative Colitis

“…Through Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology (TCMSP, https://tcmspw.com/tcmsp.php ) database, take the names of various traditional Chinese medicines in SYD as the search words, drug‐like properties (DL) ≥0.18 and oral availability (OB) ≥30% as the screening conditions to screen the effective components of every traditional Chinese medicines. 22 The predicted targets of the screened compounds were acquired from the DrugBank ( https://www.drugbank.ca/ ) database and verified literature. 7 After summarizing the targets, import them into UniProt database ( https://www.uniprot.org/ ) to standardize the names of genes and proteins.…”

Effects of TCM on polycystic ovary syndrome and its cellular endocrine mechanism

“…Berberine has the same effect as metformin in alleviating IR and improving glucolipid metabolism and reproductive endocrine status ( 87 ), and it is also beneficial to the reproductive rate of PCOS infertile patients ( 88 ). C. chinensis has the function of clearing heat and detoxifying, reversing pathological damage of PCOS ovarian tissue, and regulating the expression of inflammatory factors ( 89 ). Quercetin can reduce the levels of INS, IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α, and NF-κB nuclear translocation.…”