Network Pharmacology Analysis of the Identification of Phytochemicals and Therapeutic Mechanisms of Paeoniae Radix Alba for the Treatment of Asthma

Abstract

Background. Paeoniae Radix Alba (PRA), the root of the plant Paeonia lactiflora Pall., has been suggested to play an important role for the treatment of asthma. A biochemical understanding of the clinical effects of Paeoniae Radix Alba is needed. Here, we explore the phytochemicals and therapeutic mechanisms via a systematic and comprehensive network pharmacology analysis. Methods. Through TCMSP, PubChem, GeneCards database, and SwissTargetPrediction online tools, potential targets of active ingredients from PRA for the treatment of asthma were obtained. Cytoscape 3.7.2 was used to determine the target of active ingredients of PRA. Target protein interaction (PPI) network was constructed through the STRING database. The Gene Ontology (GO) biological process and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis were analyzed through the biological information annotation database (DAVID). Results. Our results indicate that PRA contains 21 candidate active ingredients with the potential to treat asthma. The enrichment analysis of GO and KEGG pathways found that the treatment of asthma by PRA may be related to the process of TNF (tumor necrosis factor) release, which can regulate and inhibit multiple signaling pathways such as ceramide signaling. Conclusions. Our work provides a phytochemical basis and therapeutic mechanisms of PRA for the treatment of asthma, which provides new insights on further research on PRA.