Anti cancer molecular mechanism of Actinidia chinensis Planch in gastric cancer based on network pharmacology and molecular docking

Abstract

Purpose: To determine the anti-tumor effects of Actinidia chinensis Planch (ACP) root extract as well as its mechanism of action against gastric cancer (GC) using network pharmacology.Methods: The bioactive compounds and targets of ACP, as well as GC-related genes were identified from a series of public databases. Functional enrichment analysis was conducted to find relevant biological processes and pathways. The survival analysis was conducted using GEPIA tool. Autodock was used to carry out molecular docking between the ingredients and their targets.Results: A total of 20 bioactive compounds with 209 corresponding targets were identified for ACP, and a total of 871 GC-related genes were obtained. Forty-nine (49) targets of ACP were identified as candidate genes for the prevention of GC, and the PPI network with 584 interactions among these genes was constructed. The data demonstrated that the candidate targets were involved in multiple biological processes such as oxidative stress response, apoptosis, and proliferation. Moreover, these candidate targets were significantly associated with cancer-related pathways and signal transduction pathways. The compound-target-pathway network containing 16 bioactive compounds, 49 targets and 10 pathways was constructed and visualized, and the top 3 targets with a higher degree value were AKT1, MYC, and JUN, respectively. Survival analysis revealed significant associations between GC prognosis and several targets (PREP, PTGS1, AR, and PTGS2). Molecular docking further revealed good binding affinities between bioactive compounds and the prognosis-related targets, indicating the potential roles of these ingredient-target interactions in GC protection.Conclusion: Taken together, this study has provided novel clues for the determination of the antigastric cancer mechanism of ACP.