Investigating material basis and molecular mechanism of Qing Cuo formula in the treatment of acne based on animal experiments, UPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap-MS and network pharmacology
AbstractContext Qing Cuo Formula (QCF) is a traditional Chinese medicine for treating acne, but its active compounds and molecular mechanisms are unclear.Objective To investigate the material basis and molecular mechanism of QCF.Materials and methods In vivo experiments were conducted on 60 male gol...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Taylor & Francis Group
2023-12-01
|
| Series: | Pharmaceutical Biology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/13880209.2023.2225546 |
| _version_ | 1797234839642963968 |
|---|---|
| author | Yanqi Cao Jinfeng Liang Chunguo Wang Xuejie Bao Siqi Li Qi Liu Bin Zeng David Humberto Lopez Ruoxi Yu |
| author_facet | Yanqi Cao Jinfeng Liang Chunguo Wang Xuejie Bao Siqi Li Qi Liu Bin Zeng David Humberto Lopez Ruoxi Yu |
| author_sort | Yanqi Cao |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | AbstractContext Qing Cuo Formula (QCF) is a traditional Chinese medicine for treating acne, but its active compounds and molecular mechanisms are unclear.Objective To investigate the material basis and molecular mechanism of QCF.Materials and methods In vivo experiments were conducted on 60 male golden hamsters with damp-heat acne, with a blank group, a spironolactone group and 3 QCF administration groups (given high, medium and low doses) over a 30-day period. Serum androgen and inflammatory cytokine levels were tested by ELISA. In vitro, chemical compositions of QCF were investigated by UPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap-MS. Network pharmacology approaches were used to analyse the protein–protein interaction (PPI) network and QCF active compounds-intersection targets-acne network. GO enrichment and KEGG pathway analysis was conducted subsequently.Results Low-dose QCF group (11.4 g/kg/day) showed significantly reduced levels of serum T (4.94 ± 0.36; 5.51 ± 0.36 ng/mL), DHT (6.67 ± 0.61; 8.09 ± 0.59 nmol/L), E2 (209.01 ± 20.92; 237.08 ± 13.94 pg/mL), IL-1α (36.84 ± 3.23; 44.07 ± 4.00 pg/mL) and FFA (128.32 ± 10.94; 148.00 ± 12.12 µmol/L) compared to the blank group (p < 0.05). In vitro experiments identified 75 compounds in QCF decoction, with 27 active compounds absorbed in serum. Network pharmacology identified 6 active components connecting 17 targets. GO enrichment and KEGG pathway analysis indicated that QCF’s anti-acne targets mainly regulate extracellular matrix function, inflammatory processes, immune response and endocrine function.Conclusions This study provides evidence of the molecular mechanism and material basis of QCF in treating androgen-related damp-heat acne, paving the way for further research on its potential in treating other conditions related to damp-heat constitution. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T00:09:17Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-7e0c8bf76ef14598a9b815ea468e6365 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1388-0209 1744-5116 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T16:38:27Z |
| publishDate | 2023-12-01 |
| publisher | Taylor & Francis Group |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Pharmaceutical Biology |
| spelling | doaj.art-7e0c8bf76ef14598a9b815ea468e63652024-03-29T11:10:26ZengTaylor & Francis GroupPharmaceutical Biology1388-02091744-51162023-12-0161197398510.1080/13880209.2023.2225546Investigating material basis and molecular mechanism of Qing Cuo formula in the treatment of acne based on animal experiments, UPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap-MS and network pharmacologyYanqi Cao0Jinfeng Liang1Chunguo Wang2Xuejie Bao3Siqi Li4Qi Liu5Bin Zeng6David Humberto Lopez7Ruoxi Yu8School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, ChinaSchool of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, ChinaBeijing Research Institute of Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, ChinaSchool of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, ChinaSchool of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, ChinaSchool of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, ChinaSchool of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, ChinaDepartment of Chemical and Environmental Engineering & Arizona Laboratory for Emerging Contaminants, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USANational Institute of Traditional Chinese Medicine Constitution and Preventive Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, ChinaAbstractContext Qing Cuo Formula (QCF) is a traditional Chinese medicine for treating acne, but its active compounds and molecular mechanisms are unclear.Objective To investigate the material basis and molecular mechanism of QCF.Materials and methods In vivo experiments were conducted on 60 male golden hamsters with damp-heat acne, with a blank group, a spironolactone group and 3 QCF administration groups (given high, medium and low doses) over a 30-day period. Serum androgen and inflammatory cytokine levels were tested by ELISA. In vitro, chemical compositions of QCF were investigated by UPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap-MS. Network pharmacology approaches were used to analyse the protein–protein interaction (PPI) network and QCF active compounds-intersection targets-acne network. GO enrichment and KEGG pathway analysis was conducted subsequently.Results Low-dose QCF group (11.4 g/kg/day) showed significantly reduced levels of serum T (4.94 ± 0.36; 5.51 ± 0.36 ng/mL), DHT (6.67 ± 0.61; 8.09 ± 0.59 nmol/L), E2 (209.01 ± 20.92; 237.08 ± 13.94 pg/mL), IL-1α (36.84 ± 3.23; 44.07 ± 4.00 pg/mL) and FFA (128.32 ± 10.94; 148.00 ± 12.12 µmol/L) compared to the blank group (p < 0.05). In vitro experiments identified 75 compounds in QCF decoction, with 27 active compounds absorbed in serum. Network pharmacology identified 6 active components connecting 17 targets. GO enrichment and KEGG pathway analysis indicated that QCF’s anti-acne targets mainly regulate extracellular matrix function, inflammatory processes, immune response and endocrine function.Conclusions This study provides evidence of the molecular mechanism and material basis of QCF in treating androgen-related damp-heat acne, paving the way for further research on its potential in treating other conditions related to damp-heat constitution.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/13880209.2023.2225546TCM formulapharmacological effectserum medicinal chemistryandrogensinflammatory cytokinesTCM constitution |
| spellingShingle | Yanqi Cao Jinfeng Liang Chunguo Wang Xuejie Bao Siqi Li Qi Liu Bin Zeng David Humberto Lopez Ruoxi Yu Investigating material basis and molecular mechanism of Qing Cuo formula in the treatment of acne based on animal experiments, UPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap-MS and network pharmacology Pharmaceutical Biology TCM formula pharmacological effect serum medicinal chemistry androgens inflammatory cytokines TCM constitution |
| title | Investigating material basis and molecular mechanism of Qing Cuo formula in the treatment of acne based on animal experiments, UPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap-MS and network pharmacology |
| title_full | Investigating material basis and molecular mechanism of Qing Cuo formula in the treatment of acne based on animal experiments, UPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap-MS and network pharmacology |
| title_fullStr | Investigating material basis and molecular mechanism of Qing Cuo formula in the treatment of acne based on animal experiments, UPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap-MS and network pharmacology |
| title_full_unstemmed | Investigating material basis and molecular mechanism of Qing Cuo formula in the treatment of acne based on animal experiments, UPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap-MS and network pharmacology |
| title_short | Investigating material basis and molecular mechanism of Qing Cuo formula in the treatment of acne based on animal experiments, UPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap-MS and network pharmacology |
| title_sort | investigating material basis and molecular mechanism of qing cuo formula in the treatment of acne based on animal experiments uplc ltq orbitrap ms and network pharmacology |
| topic | TCM formula pharmacological effect serum medicinal chemistry androgens inflammatory cytokines TCM constitution |
| url | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/13880209.2023.2225546 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT yanqicao investigatingmaterialbasisandmolecularmechanismofqingcuoformulainthetreatmentofacnebasedonanimalexperimentsuplcltqorbitrapmsandnetworkpharmacology AT jinfengliang investigatingmaterialbasisandmolecularmechanismofqingcuoformulainthetreatmentofacnebasedonanimalexperimentsuplcltqorbitrapmsandnetworkpharmacology AT chunguowang investigatingmaterialbasisandmolecularmechanismofqingcuoformulainthetreatmentofacnebasedonanimalexperimentsuplcltqorbitrapmsandnetworkpharmacology AT xuejiebao investigatingmaterialbasisandmolecularmechanismofqingcuoformulainthetreatmentofacnebasedonanimalexperimentsuplcltqorbitrapmsandnetworkpharmacology AT siqili investigatingmaterialbasisandmolecularmechanismofqingcuoformulainthetreatmentofacnebasedonanimalexperimentsuplcltqorbitrapmsandnetworkpharmacology AT qiliu investigatingmaterialbasisandmolecularmechanismofqingcuoformulainthetreatmentofacnebasedonanimalexperimentsuplcltqorbitrapmsandnetworkpharmacology AT binzeng investigatingmaterialbasisandmolecularmechanismofqingcuoformulainthetreatmentofacnebasedonanimalexperimentsuplcltqorbitrapmsandnetworkpharmacology AT davidhumbertolopez investigatingmaterialbasisandmolecularmechanismofqingcuoformulainthetreatmentofacnebasedonanimalexperimentsuplcltqorbitrapmsandnetworkpharmacology AT ruoxiyu investigatingmaterialbasisandmolecularmechanismofqingcuoformulainthetreatmentofacnebasedonanimalexperimentsuplcltqorbitrapmsandnetworkpharmacology |