Using Network Pharmacology to Explore the Mechanism of Peach Kernel-Safflower in the Treatment of Diabetic Nephropathy

OBJECTIVE: The mechanism of peach kernel-safflower in treating diabetic nephropathy (DN) was investigated using network pharmacology. METHODS: Network pharmacology methodology was applied to screen the effective compounds of peach kernel-safflower in the SymMap and TCMSP databases. Potential targets were then screened in the ETCM, SEA, and SymMap databases to construct a compound-target network. This was followed by screening of DN targets in OMIM, Gene, and GeneCards databases. The common targets of drugs and diseases were selected for analysis in the STRING database, and the results were imported into Cytoscape 3.8.0 to construct a protein-protein interaction network. Next, GO and KEGG enrichment analyses were performed. Finally, Schrödinger molecular docking verified the reliability of the results. RESULTS: A total of 23 effective compounds and 794 potential targets resulted from our screening process. Quercetin and luteolin were identified as the main effective ingredients in peach kernel-safflower. Furthermore, five key targets (VEGFA, IL6, TNF, AKT1, and TP53), AGE-RAGE, fluid shear stress and atherosclerosis, IL-17, and HIF-1 signaling pathways may be involved in the treatment of DN using peach kernel-safflower. CONCLUSIONS: This study embodies the complex network relationship of multicomponents, multitargets, and multipathways of peach kernel-safflower to treat DN and provides a basis for further research on its mechanism.