Possible mechanisms by which Polygonati rhizoma opposes atherosclerosis based on network pharmacology and molecular docking analyses / 药学学报

ABSTRACT

Possible mechanisms by which Polygonati rhizoma opposes atherosclerosis (AS) were identified by network pharmacology and molecular docking analyses. The Traditional Chinese Medicine Database (TCMD) and the Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology Database (TCMSP) were utilized to identify the likely active components of Polygonati rhizoma. The potential targets set of Polygonati rhizoma were predicted with the PharmaDB database and the Swiss TargetPrediction database. The targets set for AS was retrieved by OMIM, DisGeNET and NCBI Gene database. We used the STRING platform to construct a protein-protein interaction network of the intersectional targets and performed visual analysis in Cytoscape. The key targets of Polygonati rhizoma in AS were searched by network topology and the resulting GO and KEGG enrichment was analyzed by Clue GO. In addition, the key targets were verified by molecular docking in Discovery Studio 4.0. A total of 45 active ingredients and 51 potential targets were obtained in the treatment of AS. The results of the topology analysis included five key targets serum albumin, mitogen-activated protein kinase 3, mitogen-activated protein kinase 1, proto-oncogene tyrosine-protein kinase Src and matrix metalloproteinase-9. The 131 GO items showed that the biological process mainly involved the steroid receptor, cell response to steroid stimulation, the phosphatidylinositol-3 kinase signal pathway, and others. The KEGG pathway analysis included 37 pathways, which were closely related to peroxisome proliferation activated receptor signaling pathway, platelet activation pathway, vascular endothelial growth factor pathway, hypoxia inducible factor pathway and adhesion connection pathway. The results of molecular docking proved that the combined activity of the components with potential key targets is excellent. This study proposes mechanisms by which Polygonati rhizoma might act to reverse or minimize AS and provides a scientific basis for clinical research on Polygonati rhizoma.