Network pharmacology analysis of “Ling Gui Zhu Gan Decoction” in the treatment of obesity-associated non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a prevalent liver condition closely associated with obesity, affecting nearly one billion adults worldwide. "Ling Gui Zhu Gan Decoction," a traditional Chinese medicine composed of Poria, Cinnamon Twig, Atractylodes macrocephala and Licorice, has demonstrated clinical efficacy in treating obesity-associated NAFLD. The active components and targets of "Ling Gui Zhu Gan Decoction" were identified using the TCMSP, PubChem and Swiss Target Prediction databases. Disease targets for NAFLD and obesity were retrieved from GeneCards. A protein-protein interaction (PPI) network was constructed, followed by functional enrichment analyses (GO and KEGG). Finally, a drug-disease-pathway network was established. The study identified 108 therapeutic targets for "Ling Gui Zhu Gan Decoction." Key components such as trametenolic acid and cerevisterol, along with targets like PTPN1, ESR1 and EGFR, were implicated in pathways including HIF-1, NF-?B and AMPK signaling. Molecular docking further confirmed that PTPN1 can stably bind with trametenolic acid and cerevisterol. These findings suggest that "Ling Gui Zhu Gan Decoction" exerts its effects through multiple targets and pathways. Network pharmacology elucidates the potential of "Ling Gui Zhu Gan Decoction" in treating obesity-associated NAFLD through multi-target and multi-pathway mechanisms, offering an alternative therapeutic option for this condition.