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

Overview

Journal Pharm Biol

Specialties Pharmacology
Pharmacy

Date 2023 Jun 30

PMID 37390845

Authors

Yanqi Cao

Jinfeng Liang

Chunguo Wang

Xuejie Bao

Siqi Li

Qi Liu

Bin Zeng

David Humberto Lopez

Ruoxi Yu

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Context: 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: 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. , 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 ( < 0.05). 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.

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