Available online 24 January 2024

We utilized network-based approach to systematically investigate the therapeutic effects and mechanisms of Panax ginseng, a widely used herb with various health benefits.

By constructing a comprehensive network based on Panax ginseng's ingredients, protein targets, and known indications, we found that a multiscale interaction-based approach outperformed other methods in identifying disease associations.

We found that the key mechanisms of ginseng's effects on breast cancer and liver cirrhosis are mediated by cell proliferation and apoptosis.

We found that Ginsenoside-Rg3 and (20R)-Ginsenoside Rh1 have beneficial effects on liver cirrhosis.

Our work not only provides a promising framework for exploring natural products' therapeutic potential but also emphasizes the importance of network-based approaches in natural product research.

Network pharmacology has emerged as a powerful tool to understand the therapeutic effects and mechanisms of natural products. However, there is a lack of comprehensive evaluations of network-based approaches for natural products on identifying therapeutic effects and key mechanisms.

We systematically explore the capabilities of network-based approaches on natural products, using Panax ginseng as a case study. P. ginseng is a widely used herb with a variety of therapeutic benefits, but its active ingredients and mechanisms of action on chronic diseases are not yet fully understood.

Our study compiled and constructed a network focusing on P. ginseng by collecting and integrating data on ingredients, protein targets, and known indications. We then evaluated the performance of different network-based methods for summarizing known and unknown disease associations. The predicted results were validated in the hepatic stellate cell model.

We find that our multiscale interaction-based approach achieved an AUROC of 0.697 and an AUPR of 0.026, which outperforms other network-based approaches. As a case study, we further tested the ability of multiscale interactome-based approaches to identify active ingredients and their plausible mechanisms for breast cancer and liver cirrhosis. We also validated the beneficial effects of unreported and top-predicted ingredients, in cases of liver cirrhosis and gastrointestinal neoplasms.

our study provides a promising framework to systematically explore the therapeutic effects and key mechanisms of natural products, and highlights the potential of network-based approaches in natural product research.

Network-based approach

Therapeutic effects

Panax ginseng

© 2024 The Korean Society of Ginseng. Publishing services by Elsevier B.V.