Study and Experimental Validation of the Functional Components and Mechanisms of Hemerocallis citrina Baroni in the Treatment of Lactation Deficiency

The function of Hemerocallis citrina Baroni (daylily) on promoting lactation is reported in several ancient Chinese medicine books. However, nowadays, there is no conclusive data to support this statement. In this study, we investigated the effect of Hemerocallis citrina Baroni extract (HCE) on lactation insufficiency in chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) dams and further explored the mechanism and functional components through network pharmacology. The results showed that HCE could increase the offspring’s weight, serum prolactin (PRL), and oxytocin (OT) level of CUMS dams. Network pharmacology analysis revealed that the facilitation of HCE on lactation is the result of the comprehensive action of 62 components on 209 targets and 260 pathways, among this network, quercetin, kaempferol, thymidine, etc., were the vital material basis, signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3), mitogen activity protein kinase 1 (MAPK1), tumor protein P53 (TP53), etc., were the core targets, and the prolactin signaling pathway was the core pathway. In addition, verification test results showed that HCE regulated the abnormal expression of the prolactin signaling pathway, including STAT3, cyclin D1 (CCND1), MAPK1, MAPK8, nuclear factor NF-kappa-B p105 subunit (NFKB1), and tyrosine-protein kinase (JAK2). In conclusion, HCE exhibited a facilitation of lactation insufficiency, in which quercetin, kaempferol, thymidine, etc., were the most important material basis. The mechanism of this promotional effect is mediated by the prolactin signaling pathway in mammary gland.