Prediction of the mechanism of Jin Ling Zi Powder  in the intervention of gastric cancer based on transcriptomics and network pharmacology

Abstract Background Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has unique advantages in alleviating gastric cancer (GC), and Jin Ling Zi Powder is a common drug used in TCM treatment. However, the potential mechanism for its treatment of GC is unclear. Objective The purpose of this study is to integrate transcriptomics, network pharmacology and molecular docking to investigate the active components and targets of Jin Ling Zi Powder's intervention in GC and related pathways, in order to provide a basis for further revealing its mechanism of action and developing Jin Ling Zi Powder. Methods The potential targets of Jin Ling Zi Powder and GC-related genes were obtained from public database. Potential targets and signaling pathways were identified and visualized through bioinformatics analysis, including protein-protein interaction (PPI), Gene Ontology (GO) functional enrichment analysis, and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis.Subsequently, molecular docking was performed to further validate these findings. Results The results showed that potential targets including IL6, PTGS2, MMP9, HMOX1, MYC, CHRM3, TOP2A, CA2, and KCNMA1 were the therapeutic targets of Jin Ling Zi Powder for gastric cancer. The functional enrichment analysis indicate that through synergistically regulating some biological pathway, such as inflammatory response, cellular response to tumor necrosis factor, AGE-RAGE signaling pathway in diabetic complications, TNF signaling pathway, TNF signaling pathway, MicroRNAs in cancer, Pathways in cancer, etc., which have therapeutic effects on gastric cancer. In addition, the molecular docking results showed that the compounds had good binding activity to the action target in vivo. Conclusion This study comprehensively describes the potential targets and molecular mechanisms of Jin Ling Zi Powder for the treatment of gastric cancer. It also provides promising avenues for revealing the treatment of diseases by TCM through scientific basis and therapeutic mechanisms.