Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2024 Jun 26;29(13):3019.
doi: 10.3390/molecules29133019.

Integrating UPLC-Q-TOF-MS and Network Pharmacology to Explore the Potential Mechanisms of Paeonia lactiflora Pall. in the Treatment of Blood Stasis Syndrome

Mengzhen Ma  1 , Qianqian Du  1 , Suying Shi  1 , Jiahui Lv  1   2 , Wei Zhang  1   2   3 , Dezhu Ge  4 , Lihua Xing  1   2   3 , Nianjun Yu  1   2   3
Affiliations

Integrating UPLC-Q-TOF-MS and Network Pharmacology to Explore the Potential Mechanisms of Paeonia lactiflora Pall. in the Treatment of Blood Stasis Syndrome

Mengzhen Ma et al. Molecules. .

Abstract

Paeonia lactiflora Pall. (PLP) is thought to promote blood circulation and remove blood stasis. This study used blood component analysis, network pharmacology, and molecular docking to predict the mechanism of PLP in the treatment of blood stasis syndrome (BSS). PLP was processed into Paeoniae Radix Alba (PRA) and Paeoniae Radix Rubra (PRR). PRA and PRR could significantly reduce whole blood viscosity (WBV) at 1/s shear rates and could increase the erythrocyte aggregation index (EAI), plasma viscosity (PV), and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) of rats with acute blood stasis. They prolonged the prothrombin time (PT), and PRR prolonged the activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT). PRA and PRR increased the thrombin time (TT) and decreased the fibrinogen (FBG) content. All the results were significant (p < 0.05). Ten components of Paeoniflorin, Albiflorin, Paeonin C, and others were identified in the plasma of rats using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF-MS). A protein-protein interaction network (PPI) analysis showed that AKT1, EGFR, SRC, MAPK14, NOS3, and KDR were key targets of PLP in the treatment of BSS, and the molecular docking results further verified this. This study indicated that PLP improves BSS in multiple ways and that the potential pharmacological mechanisms may be related to angiogenesis, vasoconstriction and relaxation, coagulation, and the migration and proliferation of vascular cells.

Keywords: Paeonia lactiflora Pall; UPLC-Q-TOF-MS; blood stasis syndrome; molecular docking; network pharmacology.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The author Dezhu Ge was employed by Anhui Jiren Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as potential conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Bleeding and clotting times on day 13 and day 23. Fufang Danshen tablets (FDT); Paeoniae Radix Alba (PRA); Paeoniae Radix Rubra (PRR) (compared to the control group, ** p < 0.01; compared to the model group, ## p < 0.01).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Hemorheology and related functional parameters. Whole blood viscosity (WBV); erythrocyte aggregation index (EAI); plasma viscosity (PV); erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR); hematocrit (HCT); prothrombin time (PT); activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT); fibrinogen (FBG); thrombin time (TT) (compared to the control group, ** p < 0.01; compared to the model group, # p < 0.05, ## p < 0.01).
Figure 3
Figure 3
TICs of blank rat serum (A) and drug-containing PRA (B) and PRR (C) sera in positive ion mode.
Figure 4
Figure 4
TICs of blank rat serum (A) and drug-containing PRA (B) and PRR (C) sera in negative ion mode.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Mass spectra of precursor ions and product ions of Albiflorin (A), Paeoniflorin (B), Gallic acid (C), and Benzoic acid (D).
Figure 6
Figure 6
Venn diagram (A), protein–protein interaction (PPI) network (B), Gene Ontology (GO) (C), and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) (D) analysis of PLP.
Figure 7
Figure 7
The “component–target–pathway” network.
Figure 8
Figure 8
Molecular docking diagrams. AKT1–Albiflorin (A), AKT1–Naringenin-7-O-glucoside (B), ATK1–Paeoniflorin (C), EGFR–Paeonidaninol A (D), EGFR–Paeoniflorin (E), EGFR–(+)-Paeonilactone C (F), KDR–Naringenin-7-O-glucoside (G), KDR–(+)-Paeonilactone C (H), NOS3–Albiflorin (I), NOS3–PaeonidaninolA (J).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Li P., Shen J., Wang Z.Q., Liu S.S., Liu Q., Li Y., He C.N., Xiao P.G. Genus Paeonia: A comprehensive review on traditional uses, phytochemistry, pharmacological activities, clinical application, and toxicology. J. Ethnopharmacol. 2021;269:113708. doi: 10.1016/j.jep.2020.113708. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Tan Y.Q., Chen H.W., Li J., Wu Q.J. Efficacy, Chemical Constituents, and Pharmacological Actions of Radix Paeoniae Rubra and Radix Paeoniae Alba. Front. Pharmacol. 2020;11:1054. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2020.01054. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Chinese Pharmacopoeia Commission . Pharmacopoeia of the People’s Republic of China. China Medical Science Press; Beijing, China: 2020. pp. 108–165.
    1. Xie P.Y., Cui L.L., Shan Y., Kang W.Y. Antithrombotic Effect and Mechanism of Radix Paeoniae Rubra. Biomed. Res. Int. 2017;2017:9475074. doi: 10.1155/2017/9475074. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Mo X.Y., Zhao N.N., Du X.Y., Bai L.Y., Liu J.K. The protective effect of peony extract on acute myocardial infarction in rats. Phytomedicine. 2011;18:451–457. doi: 10.1016/j.phymed.2010.10.003. - DOI - PubMed

Substances

LinkOut - more resources