A network pharmacology approach to predict potential targets and mechanisms of “<i>Ramulus Cinnamomi (cassiae) – Paeonia lactiflora</i>” herb pair in the treatment of chronic pain with comorbid anxiety and depression

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) prescriptions have multiple bioactive properties. “Gui Zhi–Shao Yao” herb pair is widely used to treat chronic pain (CP), as well as anxiety and depression. However, its related targets and underlying mechanisms have not been deciphered. In this study, the network pharmacology method was used to explore the bioactive components and targets of “Gui Zhi–Shao Yao” herb pair and further elucidate its potential biological mechanisms of action in the treatment of CP with comorbid anxiety disorder (AD) and mental depression (MD). Following a series of analyses, we identified 15 active compounds, hitting 130 potential targets. After the intersections the targets of this herb pair and CP, AD and MD – sorted by the value of degree – nine targets were identified as the vital ones: Akt1, IL6, TNF, PTGS2, JUN, CASP3, MAPK8, PPARγ and NOS3. Gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis results demonstrated 11 pathways, such as AGE-RAGE signalling pathway, IL-17 signalling pathway, TNF signalling pathway, which primarily participate in the pathological processes. This study preliminarily predicted and verified the pharmacological and molecular mechanisms of “Gui Zhi–Shao Yao” herb pair for treating CP with comorbid AD and MD from a holistic perspective. <i>In vivo</i> and <i>in vitro</i> experiments will be required to further investigate the mechanisms.KEY MESSAGEA network pharmacology approach was applied to identify key targets and molecular mechanisms.Nine targets were regarded as the vital targets for chronic pain with comorbid anxiety and depression.Predicted 11 pathways were the potential therapy targets and pharmacological mechanism of “Gui Zhi–Shao Yao” herb pair. A network pharmacology approach was applied to identify key targets and molecular mechanisms. Nine targets were regarded as the vital targets for chronic pain with comorbid anxiety and depression. Predicted 11 pathways were the potential therapy targets and pharmacological mechanism of “Gui Zhi–Shao Yao” herb pair.

传统中药（Traditional Chinese Medicine, TCM）方剂具备多种生物活性特性。"桂枝-芍药药对"被广泛用于治疗慢性疼痛（Chronic Pain, CP），同时也可用于改善焦虑与抑郁症状。然而，其相关作用靶点与潜在作用机制尚未被阐明。本研究采用网络药理学（Network Pharmacology）方法，探究"桂枝-芍药药对"的生物活性成分与作用靶点，并进一步阐明其在治疗共患焦虑症（Anxiety Disorder, AD）与抑郁症（Mental Depression, MD）的慢性疼痛中的潜在生物学作用机制。经一系列分析后，本研究共筛选得到15种活性化合物，对应130个潜在作用靶点。将该药物对的靶点与慢性疼痛、焦虑症及抑郁症的靶点取交集后，按度值排序，最终筛选得到9个核心靶点：Akt1、IL6、TNF、PTGS2、JUN、CASP3、MAPK8、PPARγ及NOS3。基因本体论（Gene Ontology, GO）与京都基因与基因组百科全书（Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes, KEGG）富集分析结果显示，共得到11条信号通路，包括AGE-RAGE信号通路、IL-17信号通路、TNF信号通路等，这些通路主要参与疾病病理进程。本研究从整体视角初步预测并验证了"桂枝-芍药药对"治疗共患焦虑症与抑郁症的慢性疼痛的药理学与分子机制。后续需通过体内（In vivo）与体外（In vitro）实验进一步探究其作用机制。
【研究要点】
采用网络药理学方法识别核心靶点与分子机制。
9个靶点被视为治疗共患焦虑与抑郁的慢性疼痛的核心靶点。
预测得到的11条通路为"桂枝-芍药药对"的潜在治疗靶点与药理学机制。
采用网络药理学方法识别核心靶点与分子机制。
9个靶点被视为治疗共患焦虑与抑郁的慢性疼痛的核心靶点。
预测得到的11条通路为"桂枝-芍药药对"的潜在治疗靶点与药理学机制。

搜集汇总

背景与挑战

背景概述

该数据集通过网络药理学方法，预测了“桂枝-芍药”中药药对治疗慢性疼痛伴焦虑抑郁的潜在作用机制，识别出15个活性化合物、130个潜在靶点，并筛选出9个关键靶点（如Akt1、IL6）和11条相关信号通路（如AGE-RAGE通路）。数据集包含9个表格文件，提供了研究中的原始数据和分析结果，适用于生物化学、医学和药理学领域的进一步研究。