Qingfei Huatan Formula alleviates growth suppression and inflammation-driven metabolic dysregulation in avian infectious bronchitis virus-infected broilers

Figures

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  Fig. 1. Effects of 1QHF=Qingfei Huatan Formula QHF on clinical signs and growth performance of IBV2 IBV=Avian infectious bronchitis virus-infected broilers. (A) BWG3 BWG=body weight gain at 14 days post-infection (dpi). (B) Dynamic clinical sign scores at different time points post-challenge. (C) Effects of QHF on immune organ indices (thymus, spleen, and bursa of Fabricius) of IBV-infected broilers. Data are expressed as the Mean ± SEM4 SEM=Standard Error of the Mean. Different superscript letters indicate significant differences (P < 0.05). QHF, Qingfei Huatan Formula; IBV, infectious bronchitis virus; NC, negative control.

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  Fig. 2. Effects of QHF on respiratory viral loads and specific antibody levels. Absolute copy numbers of the IBV N gene (copies/μL) in the (A) trachea and (B) lung tissues at 3, 7, and 14 dpi. (C) Effects of QHF on serum IBV-specific IgG5 IgG=immunoglobulin G antibody levels (OD450). Data are expressed as the Mean ± SEM (n = 5). ***P < 0.01 indicates highly significant differences compared to the model group.

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  Fig. 3. QHF pacifies serum inflammatory and oxidative stress indices in IBV-challenged broilers. (A) Concentrations of serum cytokines (IL-4, IFN-γ, IL-10, and IL-1β). (B) Serum oxidative stress markers, including nitric oxide (NO), T-AOC, MDA, and xanthine oxidase (XOD6 XOD=Xanthine Oxidase). Data are expressed as the Mean ± SEM. Different superscript letters indicate significant differences (P < 0.05).

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  Fig. 4. Network pharmacology analysis of QHF against IBV infection. (A) Venn diagram illustrating the intersection of QHF compound targets and IBV disease targets. (B) PPI7 PPI=Protein-Protein Interaction network of the intersected targets. (C) Topological analysis of the top 10 core hub targets. (D) The "Herb-Component-Target-Disease" network. (E) Degree ranking of core hub genes. (F) Degree ranking of core active phytogenic components. (G) GO8 GO=Gene Ontology cellular component enrichment analysis. (H) KEGG9 KEGG=Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway enrichment analysis. (I) TNF10 TNF=Tumor Necrosis Factor signaling pathway mapping (regulated target proteins are highlighted in red).

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  Fig. 5. Cross-scale mechanistic exploration: 3D molecular docking prediction and physiological correlation matrix. (A) Predicted binding conformations of core active components (Quercetin, Baicalein, Nobiletin) with key target proteins (TP53, AKT1, STAT3, and IBV Mpro(2Q6F)). (B) Heatmap of predicted binding energies (kcal/mol) between key compounds and target proteins. (C) Pearson correlation matrix heatmap linking viral loads, serum biochemical indices, and BWG. The color scale represents the correlation coefficient (r), from −1.0 (strong negative, red) to 1.0 (strong positive, blue).