A Network Pharmacology Study to Explore Mechanism of the Drug Pair of Astragalus-Saposhnikoviae Radix in the Treatment of Allergic Rhinitis

Allergic rhinitis (AR) has now become one of the major diseases affecting people’s lives, and Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) always has good efficacy in clinical treatment. In the present study, we analyzed the most frequently used drug pair of Astragalus-Saposhnikoviae Radix (SR) in prescriptions for the treatment of allergic rhinitis by network pharmacology to reveal the modern pharmacological mechanisms of drug prevention and treatment of the disease. Firstly, the 38 active ingredients with good ADME properties from the Astragalus-SR drug pair were collected from the database, and the collated drug targets of Astragalus and SR and the targets of allergic rhinitis were mapped against each other by the network visualization software Cytoscape, followed by the establishment of a “drug active ingredient-target-disease” network diagram and the construction of a high-confidence protein-protein interaction network. Then, the common targets obtained from the disease and drug active ingredients were imported by R language for GO enrichment analysis and KEGG pathway enrichment analysis. The KEGG pathways associated with the targets of Astragalus and SR for the treatment of allergic rhinitis obtained from R enrichment analysis were imported into Cytoscape, and the CytoNCA plug-in was loaded to construct a “target-pathway” network map, and the core target wogonin (FN1) was screened. These evidences suggest that the drug pair of Astragalus-SR works in a multi-component, multi-target and integrated modulation manner for the treatment of allergic rhinitis, which provides an important basis for the treatment of allergic rhinitis.

Saposhnikoviae Radix Enhanced the Angiogenic and Anti-Inflammatory Effects of Huangqi Chifeng Tang in a Rat Model of Cerebral Infarction

Huangqi Chifeng Tang (HQCFT), a traditional Chinese formula of three herbs, has been used to treat cerebral infarction (CI). Saposhnikoviae Radix (SR) was designed as a guiding drug for HQCFT to improve its angiogenic and anti-inflammatory effects. In this study, TTC staining was used to detect the area of CI. H&E staining was used to detect the histopathologic changes in the cerebral tissue. Western blotting was performed to detect the protein expression of NLRP3, caspase 1, IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α, MMP-9, VEGF, and VEGFR2 in cerebral tissue. Immunohistochemistry was used to detect the protein expression of MMP-9, VEGF, and VEGFR2. The contents of HIF-1α, NLRP3, caspase 1, IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α in the serum were determined by ELISA. Our study showed that HQCFT and HQCFT-SR could improve the pathological condition and reduce the infarcted area of the brain tissue in a rat model. In addition, HQCFT and HQCFT-SR significantly decreased the expression levels and serum contents of NLRP3, caspase 1, IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α; increased the expression levels of the VEGF and VEGFR2 proteins; and obviously reduced the serum content of HIF-1α. Importantly, the cytokines in brain tissue and serum from the HQCFT group exhibited better efficacy than those from the HQCFT-SR group. HQCFT exerted significant angiogenic and anti-inflammatory effects in rats subjected to middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO); these effects can be attributed to the guiding and enhancing effect of SR.

Analysis of Antioxidant Capacity of Chromones in Saposhnikoviae Radix Obtained by Ultrasonic-Assisted Deep Eutectic Solvents Extraction

In this paper, ultrasonic-assisted deep eutectic solvent (DES) extraction was applied to the acquisition of chromones (cimicifugin, prim-o-glucosylcimifugin, and 5-o-methylvisamminoside) from Saposhnikoviae radix (SR). The extraction effects of 11 prepared DESs were screened taking contents of chromones as indexes. Furthermore, the optimum extraction conditions were confirmed using a single-factor test and response surface optimization test. Scavenging activities of DPPH anion and ABTS cation radicals of different SR extracts (DES, methanol, and ethanol) were studied. The analysis results of best extraction conditions optimized by Design-Expert software were as follows: extraction time (40 min), extraction temperature (60°C), and the solid/liquid ratio (32 mL/g). Scavenging rates of the DES extract for DPPH anion radical and ABTS cation radical were found to be 75.31% and 65.71%, which were higher than those of methanol and ethanol extracts. In conclusion, the developed extraction method can be regarded as a safe, green, and more effective approach for the extraction of chromones in SR.

Simultaneous Determination of Six Chromones in Saposhnikoviae Radix via Quantitative Analysis of Multicomponents by Single Marker

A method, quantitative analysis of multicomponents by single marker (QAMS), was established and fully verified based on high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) for simultaneous determination of six chromone indicators of Saposhnikoviae Radix (SR). In the present study, cimifugin (C), 5-O-methylvisamminol (V), hamaudol (H), and their corresponding glycosides, prim-O-glucosylcimifugin (GC), 4′-O-β-D-glucosyl-5-O-methylvisamminol (GV), and sec-O-glucosylhamaudol (GH), were selected as bioactive constituents and indicators for the quality evaluation of SR. GV was chosen as the unique reference standard, and relative correction factors (RCF) between GV and the other five chromones were calculated. The feasibility of QAMS for the analysis of chromones was investigated by comparing with the traditional external standard method (ESM). Furthermore, the method was proven to have accuracy (96.98%–102.50%), repeatability (RSD <3%), stability (RSD <3%), precision (RSD <3%), and desirable linearity (R2 ≧0.9999). Subsequently, 55 batches of commercial SR from different regions were determined by QAMS, and their contents were analyzed by principal component analysis (PCA), correlation analysis, and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA), respectively. Based on the results, a more refined quality standard of commercial SR was proposed: SR was qualified when the total contents of six chromones were greater than 3 mg·g−1. Furthermore, SR could initially be regarded as a superior medicine when it satisfied both conditions at the same time: the total content of GC, C, GV, V, GH, and H was greater than 8 mg·g−1, and the proportion of the total content of C, V, and H was greater than 10%. This study demonstrated that the quality of SR could be successfully evaluated by the developed QAMS method; meanwhile, valuable information was provided for improving the quality standard of SR.