The TCM Preparation Feilike Mixture for the Treatment of Pneumonia: Network Analysis, Pharmacological Assessment and Silico Simulation

The Feilike mixture (FLKM) is a valid prescription that is frequently used to assist in the clinical treatment of pneumonia. However, the mechanisms of its effects remain unclear. First, through literature evaluation, it was preliminarily determined that FLKM improved clinical symptoms, regulated immune inflammation response and ameliorated pulmonary function. Then, via database search and literature mining, 759 targets of the 104 active compounds of FLKM were identified. The component-target (CT) network showed that the key active compositions were resveratrol, stigmasterol, beta-sitosterol, sesamin, and quercetin. 115 targets overlapped with pneumonia-related targets. The protein-protein interaction (PPI) network identified TNF, AKT1, IL6, JUN, VEGFA and MAPK3 as hub targets. KEGG analyses found that they were mainly enriched in immune related pathway. Next, in vivo experiment, we observed that FLKM ameliorated pathological injury of lung tissue and reduced neutrophil infiltration in rats with LPS-induced pneumonia. And FLKM decreased the concentration of TNF-alpha and IL-6 in BALF and downregulated the expression of p38MAPK, AKT and VEGFA in lung tissue. Finally, Molecular docking tests showed tight docking of these predicted targeted proteins with key active compounds. Molecular dynamics simulation was employed to assess stability and flexibility of receptor-ligand. Among them, AKT1- stigmasterol bound more stably, and their binding free energies were -47.91 +/- 1.62 kcal/mol. This study revealed core compositions and targets for FLKM treating pneumonia and provided integrated pharmacological evidence to support its clinical efficacy.

Automated summary

The Feilike mixture (FLKM) was found to improve clinical symptoms, regulate immune inflammation response, and ameliorate pulmonary function in pneumonia treatment. Various active components interacted with pneumonia-related targets, mainly enriched in immune-related pathways. In vivo experiments showed that FLKM reduced lung injury and neutrophil infiltration in rats with pneumonia. Molecular docking tests revealed tight binding between active compounds and targeted proteins. This study identified core compositions and targets for FLKM in pneumonia treatment and provided pharmacological evidence supporting its clinical efficacy.