Network pharmacological identification of active compounds and potential actions of Erxian decoction in alleviating menopause-related symptoms

Background: Erxian decoction (EXD) is used to treat menopause-related symptoms in Chinese medicine. This study aims to identify the bioactive compounds and potential actions of EXD by network pharmacological analysis. Methods: Two databases, the Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology database and TCM Database@Taiwan, were used to retrieve literature of phytochemicals of EXD. STITCH 4.0 and the Comparative Toxicogenomics Database were used to search for compound-protein and compound-gene interactions, respectively. DAVID Bioinformatics Resources 6.7 and Cytoscape 3.01 with Jepetto plugin software were used to perform a network pharmacological analysis of EXD. Results: A total of 721 compounds were identified in EXD, of which 155 exhibited 2,656 compound-protein interactions with 1,963 associated proteins determined by STITCH4.0 database, and of which 210 had 14,893 compound-gene interactions with 8,536 associated genes determined by Comparative Toxicogenomics Database. Sixty three compounds of EXD followed the Lipinski's Rule with OB >= 30% and DL index >= 0.18, of which 20 related to 34 significant pathway-or 12 gene-associated with menopause. Conclusions: Twenty compounds were identified by network pharmacology as potential effective ingredients of EXD for relieving menopause with acceptable oral bioavailability and druggability.