Research Projects

Lung fibrosis is a progressive, fatal respiratory disease with complex pathology due to various factors. It initially presents as lung tissue scarring, leading to loss of alveolar structure and deterioration of pulmonary functioning. The disease has a two to three year prognosis after diagnosis and a bleak prognosis. Akt, a key player in the PI3K/Akt pathway, controls multiple cellular processes, including cell differentiation, proliferation, and development. Akt1-mediated mitophagy promotes alveolar macrophage apoptotic resistance, which is crucial for lung fibrosis development. Akt1 is a reliable prognostic marker and a significant component in developing small molecule inhibitors for lung fibrosis. Anti-lung fibrotic medications like pirfenidone, nintedanib, glucocorticoids, immunosuppressants, and anti-oxidants have resulted in a significant decrease in lung function, causing toxicity and high costs. Therefore, there is a need for innovative, efficient, and safe therapeutic agents. Bioactive natural compounds extracted from plants have proven to be effective in treating various inflammatory and fibrotic diseases. This work proposes a network pharmacology strategy based on high-throughput group data assessment, computer-aided virtual calculations, and database model recovery to identify and evaluate five phytomolecules that bind to Akt1 and block its activation.