Molecular mechanism underlying the hypolipidemic effect of Shanmei Capsule based on network pharmacology and molecular docking

BACKGROUND: Shanmei Capsule is a famous preparation in China. However, the related mechanism of Shanmei Capsule against hyperlipidemia has yet to be revealed. OBJECTIVE: To elucidate underlying mechanism of Shanmei Capsule against hyperlipidemia through network pharmacology approach and molecular docking. METHODS: Active ingredients, targets of Shanmei Capsule as well as targets for hyperlipidemia were screened based on database. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment were performed via Database for Annotation, Visualization, and Integrated Discovery (DAVID) 6.8 database. Ingredient-target-disease-pathway network was visualized utilizing Cytoscape software and molecular docking was performed by Autodock Vina. RESULTS: Seventeen active ingredients in Shanmei Capsule were screened out with a closely connection with 34 hyperlipidemia-related targets. GO analysis revealed 40 biological processes, 5 cellular components and 29 molecular functions. A total of 15 signal pathways were enriched by KEGG pathway enrichment analysis. The docking results indicated that the binding activities of key ingredients for PPAR-α are equivalent to that of the positive drug lifibrate. CONCLUSIONS: The possible molecular mechanism mainly involved PPAR signaling pathway, Bile secretion and TNF signaling pathway via acting on MAPK8, PPARγ, MMP9, PPARα, FABP4 and NOS2 targets.