Abstract
This study was firstly to study the relationship of “ingredient-target-pathway” and
the pharmacological effects of Isodon rubescens for the treatment of diabetes. Based on a network pharmacology method, 138 active
ingredients of Isodon rubescens were screened from the relative literatures, and their targets were confirmed by
comparing these with the hypoglycemic targets in the DrugBank database. Results showed
that Isodon rubescens contained 25 hypoglycemic ingredients, such as rabdoternin A, rabdoternin B, and
epinodosinol. These ingredients could activate 6 hypoglycemic targets, including 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme
A reductase (HMGCR), integrin α-L (ITGAL), integrin β-2 (ITGB2), progesterone receptor (PGR), glucocorticoid receptor (NR3C1), and nuclear
receptor subfamily 1 group I member 2 (NR1I2). These targets were involved in 94 signaling
pathways, such as the Rap1, PI3K-Akt, and HIF-1 signaling pathways. The cell viability
showed that the human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) treated with alcohol
extract (1.00 g/L) and the water extract (0.13 – 0.50 g/L) exhibited high viability
compared to the model group (p < 0.05), respectively. 0In animal experiments, the rats treated with water extract
of Isodon rubescens showed significant hypoglycemic effects compared to rats in the model group (p < 0.05). Overall, this approach provides an efficient strategy to explore hypoglycemic
ingredients of Isodon rubescens and other traditional Chinese medicine.
Key words
diabetes - network pharmacology -
Isodon rubescens
- Lamiaceae - active ingredient - target - signaling pathway
