Objective. This study is aimed to reveal the possible mechanisms of artemisinin in the treatment of ulcerative colitis (UC) through bioinformatics analysis and experimental verification in UC model rats. Methods. Firstly, we searched two microarray data of the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database to explore the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between UC samples and normal samples. Then, we selected DEGs for gene ontology (GO) function enrichment analysis and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis. The acute UC model of rats was established by using 3.5% dextran sulfate sodium (DSS) for 10 days to verify the core pathway. Finally, we evaluated the therapeutic effect of artemisinin at the molecular level and used metabonomics to study the endogenous metabolites in the rat serum. Results. We screened in the GEO database and selected two eligible microarray datasets, GSE36807 and GSE9452. We performed GO function and KEGG pathway enrichment analyses of DEGs and found that these DEGs were mainly enriched in the inflammatory response, immune response, and IL-17 and NF-κB signaling pathways. Finally, we verified the IL-17 signaling pathway and key cytokines, and ELISA and immunohistochemical results showed that artemisinin could downregulate the expression of proinflammatory cytokines such as IL-1β and IL-17 in the IL-17 signaling pathway and upregulate the expression of the anti-inflammatory cytokine PPAR-γ. Metabolomics analysis showed that 33 differential metabolites were identified in the artemisinin group (AG) compared to the model group (MG). Differential metabolites were mainly involved in alanine, aspartate, and glutamate metabolism and synthesis and degradation of ketone bodies. Conclusion. In this study, we found that artemisinin can significantly inhibit the inflammatory response in UC rats and regulate metabolites and related metabolic pathways. This study provides a foundation for further research on the mechanism of artemisinin in the treatment of UC.
Huazhuojiedu decoction (HZJDD), a traditional Chinese medicine prescription, has been clinically proven to be an effective treatment for ulcerative colitis (UC). However, the mechanism of HZJDD in the treatment of UC remains unclear. This study combined network pharmacology with experimental validation to explore the potential mechanism of HZJDD on UC. First, the relationship network diagrams between HZJDD and UC were established based on multiple databases. Then, the HZJDD-UC intersection genes target network was constructed and Gene Ontology-Biological processes (GO-BP) analysis was performed to discover the potential pharmacological mechanism. Finally, the results of GO-BP were verified in dextran sulfate sodium salt (DSS) induced UC rats. The network pharmacology results showed that 119 active components and 146 potential targets were screened for HZJDD, and six of the top 15 biological processes belonged to inflammatory response, cellular response to hypoxia, and cellular response to lipopolysaccharide (LPS). The GO-BP results indicated that the mechanism of HZJDD treatment of UC was related to inflammation, oxidative stress, and the regulation of LPS. Animal experiments showed that HZJDD could significantly reduce the disease activity index (DAI) score, improve colon length, and effectively repair the histomorphological and micromorphological changes in DSS-induced UC rats. Moreover, HZJDD reduced the expressions of CRP, TNF-α, IL-6, LPS, IL-1β, and IL-18; downregulated the activity of MDA; and upregulated the activities of CAT, GSH, and SOD in DSS-induced UC rats. Furthermore, HZJDD suppressed the expression of the NLRP3/caspase-1 signaling pathway at the gene and protein levels to inhibit pyroptosis. Network pharmacology and animal experiments showed that HZJDD exerted a therapeutic effect on DSS-induced UC rats by reducing inflammation, oxidative stress, and restraining the NLRP3/caspase-1 signaling pathway to inhibit pyroptosis.
ObjectiveTo investigate the therapeutic effect and possible mechanism of artemisinin on ulcerative colitis (UC) induced by sodium glucan sulfate (DSS) in rats based on network pharmacology.MethodsFirst, according to the 3D structure of artemisinin, the effective targets of the active compounds were obtained through the Swissstarge website (www.swisstargetprediction.ch/) and the TargetNet website (http://targetnet.scbdd.com/). With the aid of Genecards (https://www.genecards.org/), OMIM (https://omim.org/), TTD (http://db.idrblab.net/ttd/) to obtain effective targets of disease. The disease gene-drug target network was constructed by extracting the intersection targets of the two, and the visualization operation and analysis were performed by using Cytoscape 3.7.2. Gene function enrichment analysis and pathway analysis were performed on the intersection targets with the help of R language software. Autidock Vina was used for molecular docking of artemisinin to key targets. Then, 40 male Wistar rats were randomly divided into normal group, model group, mesalazine group (0.315 g/kg·d) and artemisinin group (0.1 g/kg·d), with 10 rats in each group. Except for the normal group, the rats in the other groups were given 3.5% DSS solution freely for 10 days to replicate the UC model. After the successful modeling, the rats were given intragastric administration. The normal group and the model group were given the same amount of 0.9% normal saline, once a day, for 14 days. The general condition of the rats was recorded every day and the disease activity index (DAI) score was performed. After the administration, the colonic mucosal damage index (CMDI) was scored, the histopathological changes of the colon were observed by HE staining, and the levels or activities of serum CRP, TNF-α, MDA, SOD, HIF-1α and T-AOC were detected by ELISA, and fecal and intestinal microbiota of rats were detected by 16S rDNA sequencing.ResultsNetwork pharmacology shows that, there were 98 key targets of artemisinin screening, 4853 effective targets of UC, and 43 intersection targets for artemisinin and UC, involving 48 signaling pathways. The molecular docking results showed that the binding energies of the key proteins to artemisinin were less than -5.0 kJ·mol-1, and the binding energy of PTGS2 NOS3 to artemisinin was the best. Animal experiments have shown that, Compared with the model group, the DAI and CMDI scores of the artemisinin group and the mesalazine group decreased, the levels and activities of serum CRP, TNF-α, MDA and HIF-1α decreased, the levels and activities of SOD and T-AOC increased, the abundance and diversity of inteatinal microbiota increased, and the abundance of p-Acidobacteria, p-Chloroflexi, p-Gemmatimonadetes, p-Nitrospirae in artemisinin group increased (P<0.05), and there was no significant change in others.ConclusionArtemisinin intervenes with UC through key target proteins such as PTGS2 and ESR1, and involves various biological processes such as inflammation and intestinal microbiota, revealing that molecular basis of artemisinin in the treatment of UC. Artemisinin is effective in improving the symptoms of UC rats, and its mechanism may be to relieve oxidative stress response by inhibiting inflammation, thus promoting intestinal mucosal repair. The regulatory effect on intestinal microbiota needs to be further studied.
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