Abstract:Objective To investigate the potential molecular mechanism of Salvia miltiorrhiza in the treatment of femoral head necrosis using the method of network pharmacology. Methods The Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology Database and Analysis Platform was used to screen out and predict potential active components and targets of Salvia miltiorrhiza. DrugBank, PharmGKB, HPO, GAD, OMIM, DisGeNET, and TTD databases were used to search for the targets associated with femoral head necrosis. Specific targets involved in the prevention and treatment of femoral head necrosis by Salvia miltiorrhiza were identified with reference to bioinformatics methods. ClueGo was used for signaling pathway enrichment analysis to investigate the possible molecular mechanism. Results Among the 202 ingredients associated with Salvia miltiorrhiza detected by the Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology Database and Analysis Platform, 65 were identified as the active components entering the blood according to oral bioavailability and drug-likeness. A total of 103 potential targets were obtained by related target prediction techniques, and with the help of the above databases, 74 known targets were found to be associated with femoral head necrosis. The Cytoscape software was used to construct the protein-protein interaction network of active components and diseases, and 130 key genes were screened out by this network and topology analysis. The signaling pathway enrichment analysis using ClueGo showed that 75 signaling pathways were involved in the key nodes of the action of Salvia miltiorrhiza on femoral head necrosis, including the bone formation signaling pathway which promoted osteoblasts and the bone resorption signaling pathway which inhibited osteoclasts. Conclusion Salvia miltiorrhiza has the characteristics of multiple targets and components in the treatment of femoral head necrosis. Major pathways not only affect the physiological processes of osteoblasts and osteoclasts, but also affect and interfere with bone microenvironment through regulating immunity and inflammatory response to control disease progression, which is consistent with the current mechanism of the treatment of femoral head necrosis.