Search

Pseudostellaria heterophylla is an important traditional Chinese herbal medicine with vast clinical consumption because of its positive effects. To date, changes in the metabolite composition of P. heterophylla have been well documented; however, the molecular differences between cultivated P. heterophylla and its wild-type are still unknown. The aim of this study was to investigate differences in cultivated and wild P. heterophylla . Due to the lack of a genomic database, we used high-throughput transcriptomic and proteomic technologies to identify proteins in the herb. Isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantification (iTRAQ) MS/MS were used to detect statistically significant changes between cultivated and wild P. heterophylla . We detected 3775 proteins; 332 showed differential accumulations across two different ecotypes of P. heterophylla . 71 significant differential expressions of proteins were selected based on GO annotations, KEGG, STRING analysis, and expression level. Quantitative real-time PCR analysis confirmed the authenticity and accuracy of the proteomic analysis. The results indicated that the carbohydrate and cellular amino acid metabolisms in cultivated P. heterophylla were weaker than those in its wild-type; seven important proteins were found to regulate sucrose and amino acids. This will provide the basic information for exploring the cause of differences in secondary metabolites in different ecotypes of P. heterophylla and the protein mechanism of its quality formation. Biological significance This study combined a transcriptome, proteome, and metabolism approach for analyzing differentially expressed proteins of cultivated and wild P. heterophylla and established the relationship between significantly differentially expressed proteins and differential chemical components in non-model plants. The results of proteomic analysis provide the basic information for exploring the quality forming process, which will demonstrate, and provide guidance for, the study of effective constituents of P. heterophylla and its quality formation mechanism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fritillariae Thunbergii Flos (FTF) included in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia (1977 Edition) is a Chinese medicinal herb traditionally used to treat bronchitis. In recent years, it has been applied in the treatment of lung cancer. However, the molecular mechanism remains largely unknown. The screening of bioactive compounds, acquisition of drug targets, network construction, and experimental validation in vivo were combined to explored the mechanism of FTF in the treatment of lung carcinoma with regards to systems pharmacology. The network Lung Cancer Pathway consisted of 114 nodes (44 compounds and 70 potential targets) and 361 edges, as well as modules that included inflammatory response, angiogenesis, negative regulation of the apoptotic process, and positive regulation of cell proliferation and migration. It was examined by conducting experiments that involved the administration of ethanol-based extracts of FTF in Lewis lung carcinoma mice. The extracts exerted excellent anti-lung cancer effects in vivo by significantly inhibiting tumor proliferation, thereby extending the survival period of tumor-bearing mice. Moreover, FTF induced the downregulation of PIK3CG, Bcl-2, eNOS, VEGF, p-STAT3, and STAT3 genes in tumor-bearing mice. The findings of the present study verify the therapeutic effects and mechanism of FTF on lung cancer and provide a theoretical basis to support the comprehensive utilization of FTF resources. Image 1 • Systems Pharmacology revealed 44 important compounds and 70 potential targets of Fritillariae Thunbergii Flos. • The possible mechanism of Fritillariae Thunbergii Flos in lung cancer treatment involved inflammatory response, angiogenesis, apoptotic process, and cell proliferation and migration. • PIK3CG, Bcl-2, eNOS, VEGF, p-STAT3, and STAT3 genes in tumor-bearing mice could be the key targets of Fritillariae Thunbergii Flos in lung cancer treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]