Have a personal or library account? Click to login
Exploring the molecular mechanism of Xiao Ji (Cirsium setosum) in treating bladder cancer using network pharmacology and molecular docking Cover

Exploring the molecular mechanism of Xiao Ji (Cirsium setosum) in treating bladder cancer using network pharmacology and molecular docking

Open Access
|Apr 2025

Figures & Tables

Figure 1.

Research process. GO, gene ontology; KEGG, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes; OMIM, Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man; PPI, protein–protein interaction; TCMSP, TCM systems pharmacology.
Research process. GO, gene ontology; KEGG, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes; OMIM, Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man; PPI, protein–protein interaction; TCMSP, TCM systems pharmacology.

Figure 2.

(A) The light green part represents the number of BC targets, and the light red part represents the number of Xiao Ji targets. (B) The purple hexagons represent Xiao Ji, the pink triangles represent the active ingredients of Xiao Ji, and the green ovals represent potential BC targets. BC, bladder cancer.
(A) The light green part represents the number of BC targets, and the light red part represents the number of Xiao Ji targets. (B) The purple hexagons represent Xiao Ji, the pink triangles represent the active ingredients of Xiao Ji, and the green ovals represent potential BC targets. BC, bladder cancer.

Figure 3.

(A) PPI network of potential targets for BC is associated with Xiao Ji. The nodes represent the proteins and the edges represent their interactions. A protein with more edges is considered to play a more important role. (B) A bar plot of the top 30 target proteins, sorted according to degree values. The longer bar represents greater connection of the protein. BC, bladder cancer; PPI, protein–protein interaction.
(A) PPI network of potential targets for BC is associated with Xiao Ji. The nodes represent the proteins and the edges represent their interactions. A protein with more edges is considered to play a more important role. (B) A bar plot of the top 30 target proteins, sorted according to degree values. The longer bar represents greater connection of the protein. BC, bladder cancer; PPI, protein–protein interaction.

Figure 4.

GO analysis and KEGG pathway enrichment of target genes for BC associated with Xiao Ji. BP, biological process; CC, cellular components; GO, gene ontology; KEGG, Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes; MF, molecular function.
GO analysis and KEGG pathway enrichment of target genes for BC associated with Xiao Ji. BP, biological process; CC, cellular components; GO, gene ontology; KEGG, Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes; MF, molecular function.

Figure 5.

Part of molecular docking results. (A) Acacetin-IL6; (B) sitosterol-IL6; (C) quercetin-IL6; (D) stigmasterol-IL6. The compound structures are shown as red sticks, the protein structures are shown as green ribbons, and the interacting residues are presented as purple and yellow lines. IL-6, interleukin-6.
Part of molecular docking results. (A) Acacetin-IL6; (B) sitosterol-IL6; (C) quercetin-IL6; (D) stigmasterol-IL6. The compound structures are shown as red sticks, the protein structures are shown as green ribbons, and the interacting residues are presented as purple and yellow lines. IL-6, interleukin-6.

The information of the 5 active components of setosum with the predicted OB ≥30% and DL ≥0_18

No.Molecule IDMolecule nameOBDLStructure
1MOL001689Acacetin34.970.24
2MOL000359Sitosterol36.910.75
3MOL000449Stigmasterol43.830.76
4MOL000098Quercetin46.430.28
5MOL001790Linarin39.840.71

The docking affinity and interactions of compounds binding to key targets

Molecule IDMolecule nameAffinity (kcal/mol)
IL-6EGFRMYCHIF1A
MOL001689Acacetin–4.12–4.0–4.37–3.13
MOL000359Sitosterol–4.37–4.54–5.1–3.71
MOL000449Stigmasterol–4.36–4.68–4.63–3.93
MOL000098Quercetin–2.163.64–3.63–1.32
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/abm-2025-0012 | Journal eISSN: 1875-855X | Journal ISSN: 1905-7415
Language: English
Page range: 94 - 105
Published on: Apr 30, 2025
In partnership with: Paradigm Publishing Services
Publication frequency: 6 issues per year

© 2025 Hui Yu, Yang Dong, Gui-cheng Zou, Yun-jie Yang, Meng-zhen Liu, Cong-hui Han, published by Chulalongkorn University
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.