In Silico and Analytical Evaluation of Beta-Sitosterol From Anogeissus Pendula As A Potential Therapeutic Agent Against Hyperlipidemia
Abstract
Hyperlipidemia, one of the main causes of cardiovascular disease, is characterized by elevation of lipids that can cause atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease. Although standard pharmaceuticals like statins and fibrates may work, their potential side effects urge the search for safer, cost-effective ones from natural sources. Medicinal plants such as Anogeissus pendula, a plant with many bioactive compounds have gained much attention because of their metabolic activities particularly for the Beta-Sitosterol presence. This plant sterol, which has a similar chemical structure to cholesterol, reduces lipid levels by blocking intestinal cholesterol absorption and modulates the major lipid metabolism pathways. In silico and analytical approaches are used in the present study to evaluate the therapeutic potential of Beta-Sitosterol isolated from A. pendula. Its high binding affinity with lipid-regulating enzymes including HMG-CoA reductase and PPAR-α indicated by molecular docking and ADMET prediction, its targeting lipid metabolism critical pathways as revealed by network pharmacology. Additionally, chromatographic analyses confirmed that its concentration in A. pendula extracts was exceedingly high, and further complemented its pharmacological relevance. The results render Beta-Sitosterol as a potentially efficacious natural agent for lipid reduction, a new hope for non-traditional lipid-lowering drugs, and worthy of future in vivo and clinical investigations
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