Systematic Pharmacological Strategies to Explore the Regulatory Mechanism of Ma Xing Shi Gan Decoction on COVID-19

Abstract

Objective To use systematic pharmacological strategies to explore the regulatory mechanisms of Ma Xing Shi Gan Decoction (MXSGD) against the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Methods Data on the compounds and targets of MXSGD were collected from the Traditional Chinese Medicene Systems Parmacology Database and Analysis Platform (TCMSP) and TCM Databases@Taiwan. Data on ACE2-related targets and the protein-protein interaction (PPI) were collected from the String database. The Cytoscape 3.7.2 was used to construct and analyze the networks. The DAVID platform was used for Gene Ontology (GO) and pathway enrichment analyses. Results Data on 272 MXSGD targets and 21 SARS-CoV-2 potential targets were collected. Four networks were constructed and analyzed based on the data: (1) compound-target network of MXSGD; (2) MXSGD-SARS-CoV-2-PPI network; (3) cluster of MXSGD-SARS-CoV-2-PPI network; (4) Herb-Pathway-Target network. The core targets included AKT1, MAPK3, IL-6, TP53, VEGFA, TNF, CASP3, EGFR, EGF and MAPK1. The antiviral biological processes were inflammatory responses (inflammatory cells, inflammatory cytokines and their signaling pathways), immune responses (T cells, monocytes, B cells and other immune cells), immune factors (IFN- γ , TNF- α and so on), virus defense, humoral immunity and mucosal innate immune response. The antivirus-related signaling pathways included TNF, NOD-like receptor, FoxO, PI3K-AKT and Toll-like receptor signaling pathways. Conclusions MXSGD can control disease progression by regulating multiple compounds and targets; it can reduce inflammation and balance immunity by regulating several proteins that interact with ACE2 and signaling pathways closely related to disease development.

Edible and Herbal Plants for the Prevention and Management of COVID-19

“…The active compounds of another herbal formula may act on ACE2, IL-6, and GM-CSF. Gancainin H and liquorice glycide E (from liquorice) act on ACE2, and glycyrin targets IL-6 and GM-CSF, orchestrating multiple signaling pathways to attenuate inflammation and viral infection, thus preventing lung and heart injury caused by SARS-CoV-2 (Shi-Ying et al, 2020).…”

The Important Herbal Pair for the Treatment of COVID-19 and Its Possible Mechanisms

“…From the KEGG enrichment analysis, our results indicated that the key signaling pathways of AE against COVID-19 are TNF, TLR, HIF-1 and NLRs, which are closely related to in ammation, immunity and oxidation process. Similarly, many studies also reported that the anti-COVID-19 mechanisms of TCM prescriptions with AE might be related to these above pathways 38,39,40 . In particular, TNF pathway has been reported to be involved in a variety of physiological and pathological processes, such as cell proliferation, apoptosis, and modulation of immune responses and induction of in ammation 41,42 , so it may play an important role in the treatment of COVID-19.…”

The important herbal pair for the treatment of COVID-19 and its possible mechanisms

“…From the KEGG enrichment analysis, our results indicated that the key signaling pathways of AE against COVID-19 are TNF, TLR, HIF-1 and NLRs, which are closely related to inflammation, immunity and oxidation process. Similarly, many studies also reported that the anti-COVID-19 mechanisms of TCM prescriptions with AE might be related to these above pathways [ 38 – 40 ]. In particular, TNF pathway has been reported to be involved in a variety of physiological and pathological processes, such as cell proliferation, apoptosis, and modulation of immune responses and induction of inflammation [ 41 , 42 ], so it may play an important role in the treatment of COVID-19.…”