Explore the Lipid-Lowering and Weight-Reducing Mechanism of Lotus Leaf Based on Network Pharmacology and Molecular Docking

Objective To predict the target of the active ingredient of lotus leaf for lowering fat and losing weight. Explore its multicomponent, multitarget, multipath mechanism.Methods Screen the main active ingredients of lotus leaves through the TCMSP database, and use the TCMSP database to predict the potential targets of the active ingredients. Obtain obesity-related targets from the human genome annotation (GeneCards) database. Use Venn software to take the intersection of the two to obtain the effect target of the lotus leaf lipid-lowering and weight-reducing effects. Use Cytoscape 3.6.0 software to construct an effective ingredient-target network. Use the STRING database to construct an intersection target protein interaction (PPI) network, visualize it with Cytoscape 3.6.0 software, and perform network topology analysis to obtain the core target. Use the DAVID database to perform gene ontology (GO) and metabolic pathway (KEGG) enrichment analysis for the above targets. Use AutoDockTools software for molecular docking to verify the binding strength.Results A total of 15 main active ingredients such as quercetin, isorhamnetin, sitosterol, and kaempferol were obtained, which can act on 135 targets related to obesity. These targets are significantly enriched in multiple GO and KEGG entries such as hypoxia response, positive regulation of gene expression, response to toxic substances, aging, and positive regulation of RNA polymerase II promoter transcription. Molecular docking shows that flavonoids such as quercetin have better binding to the target protein Akt1.Conclusion The lipid-lowering and weight-reducing effects of lotus leaf embody the characteristics of multicomponent, multitarget, and multipathway of traditional Chinese medicine, which provides a certain scientific basis for the screening and in-depth study of the effective ingredients of lotus leaf.