Study of potential anti-bronchial asthma substances in Huagai San based on in vitro and in vivo substance analysis and network pharmacology

Abstract Huagai San(HGS) is an herbal compound commonly used in the treatment of bronchial asthma. Although its effectiveness has been demonstrated in clinical applications, current research on HGS has focused on its clinical efficacy, with a lack of systematic material basis studies of the components. The mechanism of action and bioactive components of HGS are still unknown. In this study, we propose an integrated strategy based on in vivo and in vitro substance analysis and network pharmacology. The aim of this study is to elucidate the chemical composition, clarify the constituents absorbed in the blood, predict the main bioactive components, discovery of potential therapeutic targets, and use it in the study of potential anti-bronchial asthma substances for HGS. A four-step filtering strategy was established by using UHPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS and applied to the identification of the chemical composition of HGS. 185 compounds were analyzed in the herbal components, and 65 compounds including 40 prototypes and 25 metabolic products were identified in rats. Based on the in vivo composition analysis of HGS, the bioactive components and potential therapeutic targets in the treatment of bronchial asthma were investigated by network pharmacological analysis. The results provide a scientific basis for understanding the bioactive components of HGS and their pharmacological mechanisms.