Study on the Multitarget Mechanism of Sanmiao Pill on Gouty Arthritis Based on Network Pharmacology

Sanmiao pill (SMP), a Chinese traditional formula, had been used to treat gouty arthritis (GA). However, the active compounds and underlying mechanism remained unclear. Hence, network pharmacology and molecular docking were utilized to explore bioactive compounds and potential mechanism of action of SMP in treating GA. In the study, the compounds of SMP, corresponding targets, and GA-related targets were mined from various pharmacological databases. Then, herb-compound-target, compound-target, PPI, and target-pathway networks were constructed. Ultimately, molecular docking was carried out to verify the predicted results. The results indicated that 47 active compounds, 338 targets, and 144 disease targets were collected. Network analysis implied that Phellodendron chinense Schneid. played a vital role in the whole formula. Moreover, 7 compounds (quercetin, kaempferol, wogonin, rutaecarpine, baicalein, beta-sitosterol, and stigmasterol) and 4 targets (NFKB1, RELA, MAPK1, and TNF) might be the kernel compounds and targets of SMP against GA. According to GOBP and KEGG pathway enrichment analysis and target-pathway network, SMP might exert a therapeutic role in GA by regulating numerous biological processes and pathways, including lipopolysaccharide-mediated signaling pathway, positive regulation of transcription, Toll-like receptor signaling pathway, JAK-STAT signaling pathway, NOD-like receptor signaling pathway, and MAPK signaling pathway. The results of molecular docking showcased that 11 pairs of compound with targets had tight binding strength. Thereinto, 4 compounds of MAPK1 and 5 compounds of NFKB1 possessed a better combination, suggesting that MAPK1 and NFKB1 might be considered as therapeutic targets in treatment of GA. This study verified that SMP had synergistic effect on GA by multicomponents, multitargets, and multipathways.