Network pharmacology analysis of the mechanism of action of the lipid-regulating and spot-reducing formula in the treatment of hyperlipidemia combined with atherosclerosis
Zhou Min
Ouyang Wei
Mai Bingming
Li Dianhong
Liang Wenjian
Cheng Liangkai
Dong Yujuan
Abstract：Objective To explore the mechanism of action of the lipid-regulating and spot-reducing formula in the treatment of hyperlipidemia combined with atherosclerosis based on network pharmacology.Methods The TCMSP database was used to i-dentify the active ingredients and targets of the lipid-regulating and spot-reducing formula.Disease targets for hyperlipidemia and atherosclerosis were selected from the GeneCard and OMIM databases.The Venny 2.1 platform was used to obtain the in-tersection targets of the drug and the disease,and potential therapeutic targets for hyperlipidemia combined with atherosclerosis were predicted.The String database was used to construct a protein-protein interaction(PPI)network for the intersection tar-gets and identify the core targets.Gene ontology(GO)functional enrichment and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes(KEGG)pathway enrichment analyses were performed on the intersection targets.Cytoscape 3.7.2 software was used to con-struct a"core active ingredient-core target-core pathway-disease"network.Molecular docking was performed to validate the in-teraction between core active ingredients and core targets.Results A total of 272 potential active ingredients were identified for the lipid-regulating and spot-reducing formula,which could act on 127 targets related to hyperlipidemia combined with athero-sclerosis.Overall,13 core targets,including AKT Serine/Threonine Kinase 1(AKT1),tumor necrosis factor(TNF),inter-leukin-6(IL-6),interleukin-1 beta(IL-1β),and TP53,were selected,which interacted with 29 core active ingredients,inclu-ding quercetin,β-sitosterol,and kaempferol.GO analysis showed 2,040 biological process(BP)entries,79 cellular component(CC)entries,and 202 molecular function(MF)entries.KEGG pathway enrichment analysis revealed 189 related signaling pathways,mainly involving the AGE-RAGE signaling pathway,lipid metabolism and atherosclerosis,and IL-17 signaling pathways.Molecular docking results showed that the binding affinity between quercetin and the core targets AKT1,TNF,IL-6,IL-1β,and TP53 was<-5.0 kcal/mol,suggesting good binding activity between the drug components and core tar-gets.Conclusion The lipid-regulating and spot-reducing formula has a multi-component,multi-target,and multi-pathway ac-tion profile in the prevention and treatment of hyperlipidemia and atherosclerosis.Network pharmacology analysis provides the-oretical support for its lipid-lowering and anti-atherosclerosis pharmacological mechanisms.
Keywords：Network pharmacologyLipid-regulating and spot-reducing formulaHyperlipidemiaAtherosclerosisMechanism of action
Publication Date：2025-10-20
Online Publishing Date：2026-01-15(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：9( 66-74 )