Network pharmacology prediction and molecular docking analysis reveal the mechanism of modified Bushen Yiqi formulas on chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Abstract Background The present study aimed to explore the mechanism of the modified Bushen Yiqi formula (MBYF) in the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) based on network pharmacology and molecular docking. Methods First, the active ingredients and corresponding targets in MBYF were mined through the Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology database. Subsequently, Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man, DrugBank, and GeneCard were used to screen COPD‐related targets. Cytoscape was used to construct a network of candidate components of MBYF in COPD treatment. The overlapping targets of COPD and MBYF were used to treat COPD, and then CytoHubba and CytoNAC plug‐ins in Cytoscape were used for topology analysis to build the core network. In addition, core targets were used for Gene Ontology analysis and enrichment analysis of the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes. Finally, AutoDock Vina software was used to conduct a molecular docking study on the core active ingredients and core targets to verify the above network pharmacological analysis. Results Seventy‐nine active components of MBYF were screened and 261 corresponding targets were found. At the same time, 1307 related targets corresponding to COPD were screened and 111 overlapping targets were matched. By bioinformatics analysis, 10 core targets were identified, and subsequently, enrichment analysis revealed 385 BP, two CC, eight MF and 78 related signaling pathways. The binding of the core active components in MBYF to the core target was further verified by molecular docking, and all showed good binding. Conclusions The active components of MBYF, such as quercetin, kaempferol, luteolin, and baicalein, may be the material basis for the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. They affect the expression of inflammatory cells and inflammatory factors, protein phosphorylation, and smooth muscle hyperplasia through tumor necrosis factor, interleukin‐17, mitogen‐activated protein kinase, nuclear factor‐kappa B and other signaling pathways.