Study the Mechanism of Gualou Niubang Decoction in Treating Plasma Cell Mastitis Based on Network Pharmacology and Molecular Docking

Abstract

Objective. Explore the potential molecular mechanisms behind the therapeutic functions of Gualou Niubang decoction (GLNBD) in the treatment of plasma cell mastitis (PCM) by network pharmacology and molecular docking. Methods. GLNBD is a formula of Chinese traditional medicine consisting of 12 herbs. The potential active ingredients of GLNBD and their target genes were obtained from the Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology Database and Analysis Platform database, and PCM-related target genes were obtained from GeneCards, OMIM, and NCBI databases, using R language to obtain intersection targets; then, the STRING database and Cytoscape software were used to establish protein-protein interaction networks and herb ingredient target networks. DAVID was used to perform GO and KEGG pathway enrichment analyses on the intersection target. PyMoL-2.5.0 and AutoDock Tools-1.5.6 were used to verify the molecular docking. Results. 164 ingredients and 58 intersection targets were obtained in the treatment of PCM by GLNBD. Four key active compounds and four key proteins were identified. Then, Gene Ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes enrichment analyses showed that biological functions of potential target genes were associated with negative regulation of the apoptotic process, response to hypoxia, positive regulation of transcription, and DNA-templated, with related pathways involving the pathway in cancer, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) Akt signaling pathway, and AGE-RAGE signaling pathway in diabetic complications. Moreover, the binding activities of key target genes and essential active compounds of Chinese herbal medicines in GLNBD were further validated by molecular docking. The results showed that the docking results were stable and had good binding ability. Conclusion. This study suggested that four potential key active components, including quercetin, luteolin, fisetin, and kaempferol, were identified in GLNBD, which could interact with ALB, EGFR, IL-6, and VEGFA modulating the activation of the pathway in cancer, PI3K-Akt pathway, and AGE-RAGE signaling pathway in diabetic complications.

Treatment of lactational mastitis with Gualou Xiaoyong soup and painless lactation promoting technique: A case series

“…Researchers have studied these Chinese herbs and found that they contain active ingredients such as quercetin, luteolin, hesperetin, naringenin, and urushiol. [15][16][17] Quercetin is a dietary flavonoid that has effects on inflammation, angiogenesis, and vascular inflammation, it has anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antifungal properties, and can enhance the transcriptional activity of NRF2-ARE by inhibiting the NF-κB signaling pathway, therefore regulating the production of the inflammatory precursor NO. [15][16][17] Luteolin has a systemic anti-inflammatory effect and can regulate the TLR2 and TLR4 signaling pathways induced by S aureus.…”

“…[15][16][17] Quercetin is a dietary flavonoid that has effects on inflammation, angiogenesis, and vascular inflammation, it has anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antifungal properties, and can enhance the transcriptional activity of NRF2-ARE by inhibiting the NF-κB signaling pathway, therefore regulating the production of the inflammatory precursor NO. [15][16][17] Luteolin has a systemic anti-inflammatory effect and can regulate the TLR2 and TLR4 signaling pathways induced by S aureus. Hesperetin can inhibit the activation of the NF-κB inflammatory pathway and control the occurrence of inflammation.…”

“…Hesperetin can inhibit the activation of the NF-κB inflammatory pathway and control the occurrence of inflammation. [15][16][17] Naringenin can reduce the expression of IL-6, TNF-α, and ANGPTL2 in cells and prevent the occurrence of mouse mammary gland inflammation. [15][16][17] Urushiol has a dose-dependent antibacterial effect on S aureus, Escherichia coli, and Streptococcus agalactiae.…”

“…[15][16][17] Naringenin can reduce the expression of IL-6, TNF-α, and ANGPTL2 in cells and prevent the occurrence of mouse mammary gland inflammation. [15][16][17] Urushiol has a dose-dependent antibacterial effect on S aureus, Escherichia coli, and Streptococcus agalactiae. [15][16][17] The primary treatment for mastitis is breast drainage to empty accumulated milk.…”

Plasma proteome responses in zebrafish following λ-carrageenan-Induced inflammation are mediated by PMN leukocytes and correlate highly with their human counterparts

“…Next, we used the Gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis to evaluate the function and identify the pathways. The identified proteins were blasted against D. rerio , and the protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks were mapped using the Search Tool for the Retrieval of Interacting Genes/proteins (STRING) database ( 55 ). The pathway-enriched genes originated from the open-data resource of human pathways and reactions database, the Reactome ( 56 ).…”