Shandong Science ›› 2021, Vol. 34 ›› Issue (5): 26-33.doi: 10.3976/j.issn.1002-4026.2021.05.004

• Pharmacology and Toxicology • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Investigation of the molecular mechanism of Belamcandae Rhizoma-Ephedrae Herba couple medicine for treating cough-variant asthma

MEI Wei-ying,LU Wei-qing*,CHEN Yun-wei,MEI Wen-xing,SHEN Chun-ti   

  1. Department of respiratory,Changzhou Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine,Changzhou 213000,China
  • Received:2021-01-18 Online:2021-10-14 Published:2021-10-18

Abstract: This study aimed to investigate the molecular mechanism of Belamcandae Rhizoma-Ephedrae Herba couple medicine for treating cough-variant asthma on the basis of network pharmacology. The active ingredients and targets of Belamcandae Rhizoma-Ephedrae Herba couple medicine were obtained using the traditional Chinese medicine systems pharmacology database and analysis platform (TCMSP). The disease targets corresponding to cough-variant asthma were obtained from the GeneCards Database. The protein-protein interaction network was constructed and analyzed using the String online database. Gene Ontology (GO) analysis and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis were conducted using R language. Results show that a total of 30 active ingredients of Belamcandae Rhizoma-Ephedrae Herba couple medicine and 75 targets of cough-variant asthma were obtained. The interaction between the ingredients and targets is close and complicated. The targets were enriched in 98 GO processes, including nuclear receptor activity, transcription factor activity, direct ligand-regulated sequence-specific DNA binding, ubiquitin-like protein ligase binding, steroid hormone receptor activity, and steroid binding. The targets were enriched in 110 KEGG pathways, including PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, microRNAs in cancer, hepatitis B, Kaposi sarcoma-associated herpesvirus infection, and human cytomegalovirus infection. Belamcandae Rhizoma-Ephedrae Herba couple medicine may play an important role in the regulation and treatment of cough-variant asthma by regulating body immunity, anti-inflammatory activity, and reducing airway hyperreactivity.

Key words: Belamcandae Rhizoma, Ephedrae Herba, cough-variant asthma, network pharmacology, molecular mechanism

CLC Number: 

  • R259