OROXYLIN A, AS A POTENTIAL INHIBITOR OF RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS: IN SILICO EXPERIMENT BASED ON NETWORK PHARMACOLOGY AND MOLECULAR DOCKING

Oroxylin A is a potential inhibitory compound that could be applied to treat rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic, systemic autoimmune disease that can lead to joint damage, deformity, and disability if not effectively treated. Current research utilizes network pharmacology and molecular docking methods to predict the primary mechanism of action of oroxylin A against rheumatoid arthritis. Through screening via protein-protein interaction networks (PPI), 67 potential RA-related targets have been identified, with EGFR, PTGS2, ESR1, MMP9, and GSK3B potentially serving as central targets. KEGG pathway analysis indicates that these 67 potential targets are associated with pathways related to metabolism, pathways in cancer, PI3K-Akt signalling pathway, Ras signalling pathway, and microRNAs in cancer. Molecular docking has been applied to determine the binding mode and affinity of oroxylin A with these five central RA-related targets. These findings offer the potential to inhibit relevant biological targets and provide a basis for further research into the mechanism of oroxylin A against RA. Keywords: Oroxylin A; rheumatoid arthritis; network pharmacology; molecular docking