Potential molecular mechanisms of Erlongjiaonang action in idiopathic sudden hearing loss: A network pharmacology and molecular docking analyses

He Zhao; Yan Wang; Cong Xu; Guangjin Li; Yuwan Song; Jingjing Qiu; Limei Cui; Xicheng Song; Yujuan Yang; Yan Sun

doi:10.3389/fneur.2023.1121738

Potential molecular mechanisms of Erlongjiaonang action in idiopathic sudden hearing loss: A network pharmacology and molecular docking analyses

Front Neurol. 2023 Mar 30:14:1121738. doi: 10.3389/fneur.2023.1121738. eCollection 2023.

Authors

He Zhao^{1

2

3}, Yan Wang^{1

2

3}, Cong Xu^{1

2

3}, Guangjin Li^{2

3

4}, Yuwan Song^{2

3}, Jingjing Qiu^{2

3}, Limei Cui^{2

3}, Xicheng Song^{2

3}, Yujuan Yang^{2

3}, Yan Sun^{2

3}

Affiliations

¹ The Second Medical College, Binzhou Medical University, Yantai, Shandong, China.
² Department of Otolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital, Qingdao University, Yantai, Shandong, China.
³ Shandong Provincial Clinical Research Center for Otorhinolaryngologic Diseases, Yantai, Shandong, China.
⁴ School of Clinical Medicine, Weifang Medical University, Weifang, China.

Abstract

Background: Idiopathic sudden hearing loss (ISHL) is characterized by sudden unexplainable and unilateral hearing loss as a clinically emergent symptom. The use of the herb Erlongjiaonang (ELJN) in traditional Chinese medicine is known to effectively control and cure ISHL. This study explored the underlying molecular mechanisms using network pharmacology and molecular docking analyses.

Method: The Traditional Chinese Medicine System Pharmacological database and the Swiss Target Prediction database were searched for the identification of ELJN constituents and potential gene targets, respectively, while ISHL-related gene abnormality was assessed using the Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man and Gene Card databases. The interaction of ELJN gene targets with ISHL genes was obtained after these databases were cross-screened, and a drug component-intersecting target network was constructed, and the gene ontology (GO) terms, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes, and protein-protein interaction networks were analyzed. Cytoscape software tools were used to map the active components-crossover target-signaling pathway network and screened targets were then validated by establishing molecular docking with the corresponding components.

Result: Erlongjiaonang contains 85 components and 250 corresponding gene targets, while ISHL has 714 disease-related targets, resulting in 66 cross-targets. The bioinformatical analyses revealed these 66 cross-targets, including isorhamnetin and formononetin on NOS3 expression, baicalein on AKT1 activity, and kaempferol and quercetin on NOS3 and AKT1 activity, as potential ELJN-induced anti-ISHL targets.

Conclusion: This study uncovered potential ELJN gene targets and molecular signaling pathways in the control of ISHL, providing a molecular basis for further investigation of the anti-ISHL activity of ELJN.

Keywords: Erlongjiaonang; ISHL; TCM; bioinformatics; gene targets.