{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,28]],"date-time":"2026-09-28T21:41:08Z","timestamp":1790631668550,"version":"4.1.0"},"reference-count":49,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,7]],"date-time":"2025-11-07T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1762473600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Chem."],"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Background<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains refractory because recurrence, drug resistance and systemic toxicity limit current therapeutics. The traditional herb pair Sophorae Flavescentis Radix-Astragali Radix (SF-AR) is reputed to counter liver disorders, but its anti-HCC potential and chemical basis have not been delineated.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Anti-tumor activity was assessed in HepG2 cells and an H22 allograft mouse model. Constituents were characterized by high-performance liquid-chromatography\u2013quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry, and bioavailable prototypes were traced in rat plasma and organs. Absorbed molecules were linked to HCC-related targets through network pharmacology, and molecular docking examined their interactions to suggest potential target engagement.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>SF-AR suppressed HepG2 proliferation, abolished colony formation and induced dose-dependent apoptosis without harming L02 normal hepatocytes. Oral administration reduced H22 tumor burden in a dose-responsive manner without overt toxicity under the study conditions. Ninety-five constituents were delineated, encompassing 37 flavonoids, 23 alkaloids, 12 terpenoids, and organic, amino and nucleic acids; class-specific collision-induced dissociation pathways were summarized, including RDA cleavages for isoflavonoids and diagnostic ions for matrine-type alkaloids. Following oral administration, twenty-two prototype constituents were detected in rat plasma and were preferentially distributed to liver, kidney and spleen, confirming systemic exposure. Network pharmacology associated the absorbed constituents with potential HCC-related targets, and inflammation- and survival-related pathways were implicated as potential targets; favorable binding of representative constituents to these proteins was supported by molecular docking.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Integrated pharmacological, chemical and computational evidence links the measurable anti-HCC efficacy of SF-AR to a bioavailable, multi-class phytochemical ensemble that converges on inflammation-driven survival pathways. SF-AR therefore emerges as a multi-target, low-toxicity therapeutic candidate that warrants further preclinical development for hepatocellular carcinoma.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fchem.2025.1687098","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,7]],"date-time":"2025-11-07T06:22:00Z","timestamp":1762496520000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["Elucidating the phytochemical profile of Sophorae Flavescentis Radix-Astragali Radix herb pair: an integrated LC-QTOF-MS\/MS, pharmacological activity, and network pharmacology study on anti-hepatocellular carcinoma effects"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"13","author":[{"given":"Yidi","family":"Yin","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jiameng","family":"Qu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Lanzhuo","family":"Qu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Zhiyuan","family":"Li","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Huarong","family":"Xu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Qing","family":"Li","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,7]]},"reference":[{"key":"B1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1984","DOI":"10.1080\/10717544.2018.1526227","article-title":"Antitumor activities of novel glycyrrhetinic acid-modified curcumin-loaded cationic liposomes in vitro and in H22 tumor-bearing mice","volume":"25","author":"Chang","year":"2018","journal-title":"Drug Deliv."},{"key":"B2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"112895","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jep.2020.112895","article-title":"Astragali radix (huangqi): a promising edible immunomodulatory herbal medicine","volume":"258","author":"Chen","year":"2020","journal-title":"J. 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