Chuan Liu1,
Fang-Fang Fan1,
Xuan-Hao Li1,
Wen-Xiang Wang1,
Ya Tu2,
Yi Zhang1 
For correspondence:- Yi Zhang Email: zhangyi@cdutcm.edu.cn
Accepted: 21 June 2020 Published: 31 July 2020
Citation: Liu C, Fan F, Li X, Wang W, Tu Y, Zhang Y. Elucidation of the mechanism of action of the anti-cholecystitis effect of the Tibetan medicine “Dida” using network pharmacology. Trop J Pharm Res 2020; 19(7):1449-1457 doi: 10.4314/tjpr.v19i7.17
© 2020 The authors.
This is an Open Access article that uses a funding model which does not charge readers or their institutions for access and distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0) and the Budapest Open Access Initiative (http://www.budapestopenaccessinitiative.org/read), which permit unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited..
Purpose: To study the mechanism involved in the anti-cholecystitis effect the Tibetan medicine “Dida”, using network pharmacology-integrated molecular docking simulations
Methods: In this investigation, the bioactive compounds of Dida were collected, network pharmacology methods to predict their targets, and networks were constructed through GO and KEGG pathway analyses. The potential binding between the bioactive compounds and the targets were demonstrated using molecular docking simulations.
Results: A total of 12 bioactive compounds and 50 key targets of Dida were identified. Two networks, namely, protein–protein interaction (PPI) network of cholecystitis targets, and compound–target–pathway network, were established. Network analysis showed that 10 targets (GAPDH, AKT1, CASP3, EGFR, TNF, MAPK3, MAPK1, HSP90AA1, STAT3, and BCL2L1) may be the therapeutic targets of Dida in cholecystitis. Analysis of the KEGG pathway indicated that the anti-cholecystitis effect of Dida may its regulation of a few crucial pathways, such as apoptosis, as well as toll-like receptor, T cell receptor, NOD-like receptor, and MAPK signaling pathways. Furthermore, molecular docking simulation revealed that CASP3, CAPDH, HSP90AA1, MAPK3, MAPK1, and STAT3 had well-characterized interactions with the corresponding compounds.
Conclusion: The mechanism underlying the anti-cholecystitis effect of Dida has been successfully predicted and verified using a combination of network pharmacology and molecular docking simulation. This provides a firm basis for the experimental verification of the use of Dida in the treatment of cholecystitis, and enhances its rational application in clinical practice.
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