Chinese Medicine Meets Conventional Medicine in Targeting COVID-19 Pathophysiology, Complications and Comorbidities.

Qian Xuesen Collaborative Research Center of Astrochemistry and Space Life Sciences, Institute of Drug Discovery Technology, Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, 315211, China. Department of Biological Medicines & Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Immunotherapeutics, Fudan University School of Pharmacy, Shanghai, 201203, China. Bioinformatics and Drug Design Group, Department of Pharmacy, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117543, Singapore. Medical College, Tibet University, Lhasa, 850011, China. Department of Chemical Biology, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, and The Key Laboratory for Chemical Biology of Fujian Province, Xiamen University, Xiamen, Fujian Province, 361005, China. Key Laboratory of Bioorganic Phosphorus Chemistry and Chemical Biology (Ministry of Education), Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 102206, China. Qian Xuesen Collaborative Research Center of Astrochemistry and Space Life Sciences, Institute of Drug Discovery Technology, Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, 315211, China. chenyuzong@nbu.edu.cn. Bioinformatics and Drug Design Group, Department of Pharmacy, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117543, Singapore. chenyuzong@nbu.edu.cn.

Chinese journal of integrative medicine. 2022;(7):627-635

Abstract

OBJECTIVE To investigate how the National Health Commission of China (NHCC)-recommended Chinese medicines (CMs) modulate the major maladjustments of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), particularly the clinically observed complications and comorbidities. METHODS By focusing on the potent targets in common with the conventional medicines, we investigated the mechanisms of 11 NHCC-recommended CMs in the modulation of the major COVID-19 pathophysiology (hyperinflammations, viral replication), complications (pain, headache) and comorbidities (hypertension, obesity, diabetes). The constituent herbs of these CMs and their chemical ingredients were from the Traditional Chinese Medicine Information Database. The experimentally-determined targets and the activity values of the chemical ingredients of these CMs were from the Natural Product Activity and Species Source Database. The approved and clinical trial drugs against these targets were searched from the Therapeutic Target Database and DrugBank Database. Pathways of the targets was obtained from Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes and additional literature search. RESULTS Overall, 9 CMs modulated 6 targets discovered by the COVID-19 target discovery studies, 8 and 11 CMs modulated 8 and 6 targets of the approved or clinical trial drugs for the treatment of the major COVID-19 complications and comorbidities, respectively. CONCLUSION The coordinated actions of each NHCC-recommended CM against a few targets of the major COVID-19 pathophysiology, complications and comorbidities, partly have common mechanisms with the conventional medicines.

Methodological quality

Publication Type : Comparative Study

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