Exploration of the Therapeutic Potential of Salvianolic Acid B Against senile Cataracts Based on Network Pharmacology and Experimental Validation

Abstract

Background The aim of this study was to explore the preventive and therapeutic potential of salvianolic acid B in inhibiting senile cataracts through network pharmacology and experimental validation. Methods Disease-related genes were obtained from the DisGeNET and GeneCards databases. Drug targets were identified from the Swiss Target Prediction and PharmMapper databases, shared genes were identified via the Venny website, links between genes were identified via a protein–protein interaction (PPI) network, and GO and KEGG analyses were subsequently performed via R software. The key genes were identified via Cytoscape software, and their binding with Sal-B was demonstrated by molecular docking. Then, the results were verified by cell experiments. A CCK-8 assay was used to assess the activity of human LECs with or without H2O2 or Sal-B treatment, and the cell apoptosis rate of each group was determined by flow cytometry. The gene expression levels of caspase 3, TNF-α and MMP-9 in human LECs treated with or without H2O2 or Sal-B were determined by qPCR. Results A total of 705 and 152 cataract-related genes and salvianolic acid B-related genes, respectively, were identified, with 37 shared genes. The PPI results showed that MMP9, IL-2, JUN, TNF-α and caspase 3 were the core genes. GO data analysis revealed that the biological process, cell component and molecular function terms were most enriched in the categories “apoptosis progress”, “cytosol” and “protein binding”. Through KEGG enrichment analysis, we found that the core genes were related to the IL-17 and TNF signalling pathways. Cytoscape results showed that MMP9, TNF-α and caspase 3 were the key genes, and molecular docking showed that the drugs interacted well with the target molecules. The experimental results showed that salvianolic acid B inhibited H2O2-induced decreases in LEC activity and apoptosis and inhibited the gene expression of MMP9, TNF-α and caspase 3. Conclusion Network pharmacology and molecular docking results showed that salvianolic acid B has the potential to prevent and treat senile cataracts. The experimental results verified the finding that salvianolic acid B can inhibit the decrease in LEC activity and apoptosis induced by H2O2 and verified the expression of the key molecules MMP9, TNF-α and caspase 3.