Research on the mechanism of Chinese herbal medicine Radix Paeoniae Rubra in improving chronic pelvic inflammation disease by regulating PTGS2 in the arachidonic acid pathway.

• PTGS2 may be a potential therapeutic target for pelvic inflammation disease (CPID). • RPR attenuates uterine inflammation in CPID rats by downregulating PTGS2 expression. • RPR can treat CPID by acting on the arachidonic acid pathway. Radix Paeoniae Rubra (RPR) is a traditional Chinese medicine with anti-inflammatory effects that has been used in chronic pelvic inflammation disease (CPID) therapy. However, research on the mechanism of RPR in CPID therapy is lacking. Here, we used a network pharmacology method to screen targets and found that the PTGS2 target in the arachidonic acid (AA) pathway was significantly related to CPID. Then, regarding the molecular mechanism, it was further confirmed that RPR may reduce the development of CPID by regulating the PTGS2 target. The CPID rat model was established by mixed bacterial infection. We verified the expression of PTGS2 by immunohistochemical analysis, western blotting assays to detect the expression of PTGS2 protein, and polymerase chain reaction detection of PTGS2 mRNA expression. It was observed that the PTGS2 target decreased significantly after RPR administration at different doses. It is suggested that RPR can reverse the abnormal expression of PTGS2 in CPID rats. We believe that RPR is effective in the treatment of CPID, and RPR can reduce the inflammatory symptoms of CPID by regulating the level of PTGS2 in the AA pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]