Objective Serum metabolomics combined with network pharmacology were used to explore the related metabolic pathways and action targets of Shuganheweitang(SGHWT)in the treatment of depression,and to explore the anti-depression mechanism of SGHWT.Methods Ten of the 40 SD male rats were randomly selected as normal control group,and the remaining 30 rats were reproduced as depressed rat model by chronic unpredictable mild stress(CUMS).They were divided into model group,SGHWT group(7.34 g·kg-1·d-1)and fluoxetine group(1.58 mg·kg-1·d-1),with 10 animals in each group and ontinuous modeling and gavage lasted for 6 weeks.The endogenous differential metabolites in rat serum were detected by UPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS.The core components and key target information of SGHWT were selected by network pharmacology.Finally,combined analysis of differential metabolites and protein targets was carried out by Cytoscape software.Serum contents of arachidonic acid(AA),tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α),interleukin-6(IL-6)and cyclooxygenase(COX-2)in each group were detected according to the analysis results.Results A total of 47 different metabolites were identified from the serum metabolome,18 of which could be recovered by SGHWT.Through pathway enrichment analysis,it was found that it was mainly involved in arachidonic acid metabolism and primary bile acid biosynthesis.71 active ingredients and 47 key target proteins of SGHWT were screened by network pharmacological means,and the proportion of arachidonic acid and related targets was the largest in the combined analysis.The ELISA results showed that compared with the control group,the serum contents of AA(P<0.05),IL-6(P<0.01)and TNF-α(P<0.01)in model group were significantly increased.Compared with model group,the contents of IL-6 and TNF-α in SGHWT group were significantly decreased(P<0.01).Conclusion The effective components of SGHWT have the characteristics of multi-target and multi-pathway in the treatment of depression.Further,the mechanism of action may be related to the fact that SGHWT is involved in regulating the metabolic pathway of arachidonic acid,inhibiting the level of inflammatory factors,and then improving the depression-like symptoms induced by chronic stress.

Objective Serum metabolomics combined with network pharmacology were used to explore the related metabolic pathways and action targets of Shuganheweitang(SGHWT)in the treatment of depression,and to explore the anti-depression mechanism of SGHWT.Methods Ten of the 40 SD male rats were randomly selected as normal control group,and the remaining 30 rats were reproduced as depressed rat model by chronic unpredictable mild stress(CUMS).They were divided into model group,SGHWT group(7.34 g·kg-1·d-1)and fluoxetine group(1.58 mg·kg-1·d-1),with 10 animals in each group and ontinuous modeling and gavage lasted for 6 weeks.The endogenous differential metabolites in rat serum were detected by UPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS.The core components and key target information of SGHWT were selected by network pharmacology.Finally,combined analysis of differential metabolites and protein targets was carried out by Cytoscape software.Serum contents of arachidonic acid(AA),tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α),interleukin-6(IL-6)and cyclooxygenase(COX-2)in each group were detected according to the analysis results.Results A total of 47 different metabolites were identified from the serum metabolome,18 of which could be recovered by SGHWT.Through pathway enrichment analysis,it was found that it was mainly involved in arachidonic acid metabolism and primary bile acid biosynthesis.71 active ingredients and 47 key target proteins of SGHWT were screened by network pharmacological means,and the proportion of arachidonic acid and related targets was the largest in the combined analysis.The ELISA results showed that compared with the control group,the serum contents of AA(P<0.05),IL-6(P<0.01)and TNF-α(P<0.01)in model group were significantly increased.Compared with model group,the contents of IL-6 and TNF-α in SGHWT group were significantly decreased(P<0.01).Conclusion The effective components of SGHWT have the characteristics of multi-target and multi-pathway in the treatment of depression.Further,the mechanism of action may be related to the fact that SGHWT is involved in regulating the metabolic pathway of arachidonic acid,inhibiting the level of inflammatory factors,and then improving the depression-like symptoms induced by chronic stress.