Mechanism Study of <i>Coreopsis tinctoria</i> Nutt. on Diabetes Retinopathy Based on Liver–Eye Axis by UHPLC‐MS

ABSTRACT Coreopsis tinctoria Nutt. (CT) has the effects of clearing heat and detoxifying, which can be used to treat red‐eye swelling. At present, there are studies on CT treatment of diabetic retinopathy (DR). Diabetes can affect the function of the eyes, which is closely related to the liver. The connection between the liver and the eyes is valued as the liver–eye axis. There are no reports on the mechanism of CT action on the liver in DR. This study analyzed the differences in the liver in DR rats before and after administration using network pharmacology, LC‐MS‐based non‐targeted metabolomics, and energy substances metabolism. Then, a joint analysis of hepatomics, plasma metabolomics, energy metabolism, and network pharmacology results was conducted to discover the overall biological axis pattern. Non‐targeted metabolomics revealed the pentose phosphate pathway (PPP) and riboflavin pathway are the main enriched metabolic pathways, closely related to energy metabolism. Energy substance metabolism revealed CT regulates liver energy metabolism, and the tricarboxylic acid cycle is the main enriched metabolic pathway. Integrated analysis revealed the PPP is the upstream key pathway. The research reveals the mechanism of CT treatment for DR based on the liver and provides a reference for studying the liver–eye axis.