RESUMO
ObjectiveTo evaluate the utility and mechanism of Huangqintang combined with carboplatin in chemotherapy of endometrial cancer by experiments as well as network pharmacology and molecular docking. MethodThe xenograft model of endometrial carcinoma was induced in BALB/c nude mice. When the tumor volume reached about 100 mm3，24 nude mice were randomly assigned into a model group， a Huangqintang group （3.5 g·kg-1），a carboplatin group （50 mg·kg-1），and a combination group （3.5 g·kg-1 Huangqintang + 50 mg·kg-1 carboplatin）， with six mice in each group. The mice in the model group received 200 μL of normal saline by gavage， twice a day. The volume of the tumor and the body weight of the mice were measured every two days. After drug intervention for 20 days， the blood of the mice was collected for renal function and blood routine tests. Then the nude mice were euthanized and the tumor was weighted. In combination with the experimental results，the underlying mechanism of Huangqintang combined carboplatin was predicted through network pharmacology and the binding sites of active components were predicted by molecular docking. ResultThe tumor inhibition rates of the Huangqintang group，the carboplatin group， and the combination group were 8.87%，50.33% （P<0.05），and 64.66% （P<0.01），respectively. Compared with the results in the model group，the body weight，leukocyte，erythrocyte， and hemoglobin in the carboplatin group decreased，and creatinine and uric acid increased （P<0.05）. Compared with the carboplatin group，the combination group showed increased body weight，leukocyte， and hemoglobin （P<0.05），and decreased creatinine and uric acid （P<0.05）. A total of 114 potential active components of Huangqintang involved 200 targets related to the side effects of carboplatin. The core genes involved were mainly heat shock protein 90AA1 （HSP90AA1），transcription factor c-Jun （JUN）， and mitogen-activated protein kinase （MAPK）. Molecular docking showed that baicalein and wogonin could form a stable protein complex with HSP90AA1， serving as potential active molecules. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes （KEGG） analysis revealed that it might be related to the regulation of tumor necrosis factor（TNF） signaling pathway，interleukin（IL）-17 signaling pathway， MAPK signaling pathway， and toll-like receptor pathway. ConclusionHuangqintang has no obvious inhibitory effect on endometrial cancer，and the tumor suppression effect is not significantly enhanced after combination with carboplatin，but Huangqintang can alleviate carboplatin-induced side effects. The mechanism may be related to the complex network of Chinese medicine.