Objective To explore the effects and mechanisms of sea cucumber intestinal ovigerm peptides (SCIOP) on enhancing the immune function of mice through network pharmacology and animal experiments. Methods The database was used to screen the active chemical components of SCIOP and the targets of immune cells. Gene ontology (GO) functional analysis, kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis were conducted on the relevant core targets to preliminarily explore the potential targets and mechanisms of SCIOP in enhancing immune function. Male kunming mice (KM) aged 4-5 weeks old were randomly assigned to 4 groups. The experimental groups were treated with SCIOP at doses of 0.52 g/kg (SCIOP-L) and 1.04 g/kg (SCIOP-H) via gavage, the positive control group received 0.52 g/kg of sea cucumber peptides, while the blank control group was given an equal volume of distilled water by gavage. After 30 days of gavage, various immune indicators were measured, including organ/body weight ratio, delayed-type hypersensitivity, splenic lymphocyte transformation capacity, humoral immunity, and peritoneal macrophage phagocytic activity were measured. Results The results of network pharmacology showed that the active ingredients of SCIOP in enhancing immune function mought be cucumarioside, holothurin and other 15 kinds of ingredients. The key targets mought be cell division cycle 25A (CDC25A), fibroblast growth factor 1 (FGF1) and other 46 immune targets, which mainly enriched in cell adhesion molecules, hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1)and other 14 signaling pathways. Animal experiment results showed that SCIOP significantly increased delayed-type hypersensitivity, serum hemolysin level, the phagocytic capacity of peritoneal macrophages, and splenic lymphocyte transformation capacity. Conclusion SCIOP activates immune cells with characteristics of multiple components, multiple targets, and multiple pathways, which may exert their immune-enhancing effects through various active components acting on multiple core targets and regulating a number of signaling pathways.
| 科 Family | 属数 Number of genus | 种数 Number of species | 占总种数比例 Percentage of total species (%) | 属 Genus | 种数 Number of species | 占总种数比例 Percentage of total species (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 鹅膏菌科Amanitaceae | 2 | 11 | 5.26 | 鹅膏菌属 Amanita | 10 | 4.78 |
| 小菇科 Mycenaceae | 2 | 12 | 5.74 | 丝盖伞属 Inocybe | 5 | 2.39 |
| 多孔菌科 Polyporaceae | 8 | 14 | 6.70 | 蜡蘑属 Laccaria | 5 | 2.39 |
| 红菇科 Russulaceae | 3 | 23 | 11.00 | 小皮伞属 Marasmius | 6 | 2.87 |
| 小菇属 Mycena | 11 | 5.26 | ||||
| 光柄菇属 Pluteus | 5 | 2.39 | ||||
| 红菇属 Russula | 17 | 8.13 | ||||
| 栓菌属 Trametes | 5 | 2.39 |