Study on compatibility rationality of Yuanhu Zhitong Dropping Pills for treatment of primary dysmenorrhea based on network pharmacology / 中草药

ABSTRACT

Objective: To explore the compatibility rationality of Yuanhu Zhitong Dropping Pills (YZDP) for the treatment of primary dysmenorrhea. Methods: The potential targets and pathways of tetrahydropalmatine, palmatine, glaucine, protopine, imperatorin, and isoimperatorin, selected as the representative compounds of alkaloid and coumarin from Corydalis Rhizoma and Angelicae Dahuricae Radix, were predicted by the methods of network pharmacology. The results were verified by docking and the mechanism and compatibility regularity of YZDP were analyzed by integrating all the data. Results: The in silico prediction results showed that the six compounds of YZDP affected 19 related pathways through 23 target proteins. The pathways were involved in central analgesia, hormonal regulation, spasmolysis, vasodilatation, inflammation, and immunoregulation. The alkaloid and coumarin showed common targets and pathways but also had their own emphasis. The pathways were connected by the common targets, showing the synergistic effect of different compounds by acting on multi-targets and multi-pathways. Conclusion: Corydalis Rhizoma acts as monarch drug, showing the effect of analgesia, regulating qi, and activating blood by acting on thromboxane receptors, angiotensin receptors, and targets related with central analgesia and spasmolysis. Angelicae Dahuricae Radix, showing the effect of regulating qi, and activating blood by regulating the pathways of spasm, inflammation, and so on, acts as ministerial drug to assist monarch drug to enhance treatment which reflected the compatibility rationality of Corydalis Rhizoma and Angelicae dahuricae Radix.