Cuscuta chinensis Lam. alleviates transforming growth factor beta-induced endometrial fibrosis and inflammation in vitro

Abstract Objectives In this study, we intend to investigate and report the effect of Cuscuta chinensis Lam. (CCL) treatment on transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β)-induced endometrial fibrosis and inflammation. Methods Human endometrial stromal cells (HESCs) were treated with CCL. The efficacy of CCL on TGF-β-induced endometrial fibrosis and inflammation was assessed by detecting the expression levels of fibrosis and THP-1 inflammatory markers in HESCs using western blot and quantitative real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. The active ingredients and corresponding targets of the drugs were obtained from TCMSP and ETCM 2.0 databases. The relevant targets of IUA were collected using DisGeNET and GeneCards databases. Possible therapeutic targets of CCL in IUA were analyzed using R-based gene ontology (GO) and KEGG enrichment analysis. The top six targets ranked by degree were validated in HESCs and THP-1 cells. Results CCL treatment can significantly reverse the levels of TGF-β-induced fibrosis markers in HESCs, including α-SMA, COL1A1, vimentin, and E-cadherin (p