title: Network pharmacology-based identification of key pharmacological pathways of Yin-Huang-Qing-Fei capsule acting on chronic bronchitis.
abstract: For decades in China, the Yin-Huang-Qing-Fei capsule (YHQFC) has been widely used in the treatment of chronic bronchitis, with good curative effects. Owing to the complexity of traditional Chinese herbal formulas, the pharmacological mechanism of YHQFC remains unclear. To address this problem, a network pharmacology-based strategy was proposed in this study. At first, the putative target profile of YHQFC was predicted using MedChem Studio, based on structural and functional similarities of all available YHQFC components to the known drugs obtained from the DrugBank database. Then, an interaction network was constructed using links between putative YHQFC targets and known therapeutic targets of chronic bronchitis. Following the calculation of four topological features (degree, betweenness, closeness, and coreness) of each node in the network, 475 major putative targets of YHQFC and their topological importance were identified. In addition, a pathway enrichment analysis based on the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway database indicated that the major putative targets of YHQFC are significantly associated with various pathways involved in anti-inflammation processes, immune responses, and pathological changes caused by asthma. More interestingly, eight major putative targets of YHQFC (interleukin [IL]-3, IL-4, IL-5, IL-10, IL-13, FCER1G, CCL11, and EPX) were demonstrated to be associated with the inflammatory process that occurs during the progression of asthma. Finally, a molecular docking simulation was performed and the results exhibited that 17 pairs of chemical components and candidate YHQFC targets involved in asthma pathway had strong binding efficiencies. In conclusion, this network pharmacology-based investigation revealed that YHQFC may attenuate the inflammatory reaction of chronic bronchitis by regulating its candidate targets, which may be implicated in the major pathological processes of the asthma pathway.
authors.affiliation: School of Chinese Materia Medica, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine; Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing.
authors.forename: Guohua
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing.
authors.forename: Yanqiong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: The First Affiliated Hospital of Hunan University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Changsha.
authors.forename: Weiqiong
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Ren
authors.affiliation: School of Chinese Materia Medica, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine.
authors.forename: Ling
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Dong
authors.affiliation: Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing; School of Chinese Materia Medica, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin.
authors.forename: Junfang
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing; School of Basic Medicine, Shandong University of Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China.
authors.forename: Ya
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Geng
authors.affiliation: Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing.
authors.forename: Yi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing.
authors.forename: Defeng
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing.
authors.forename: Haiyu
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing.
authors.forename: Hongjun
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yang
mesh_terms: D000284:Administration, Oral; D018927:Anti-Asthmatic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001249:Asthma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000503:physiopathology; D029481:Bronchitis, Chronic / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism; D002214:Capsules; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006801:Humans; D018836:Inflammation Mediators / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors* / Q000378:metabolism; D008168:Lung / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000503:physiopathology; D062105:Molecular Docking Simulation; D015394:Molecular Structure; D011485:Protein Binding; D025941:Protein Interaction Mapping; D060066:Protein Interaction Maps; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000187:drug effects*; D013329:Structure-Activity Relationship; D049490:Systems Biology / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D018927:Anti-Asthmatic Agents; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents; D002214:Capsules; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal; D018836:Inflammation Mediators; C000622018:yin-huang-qing-fei
keywords: Yin–Huang–Qing–Fei capsule; asthma pathway; chronic bronchitis; network pharmacology; traditional Chinese medicine