Network pharmacology-based comparative review of Himalayan Panax bipinnatifidus and Chinese Panax notoginseng: Shared Ginsenosides, predicted molecular targets, and therapeutic potential

Background Panax notoginseng (Sanqi, 三七) is a foundation herb of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), forming the principal active ingredient of major Chinese patent medicines including Yunnan Baiyao (云南白药), Xuesaitong (血塞通), and Xueshuantong (血栓通) widely prescribed for hemostatic and cardio-cerebrovascular indications. Wild Himalayan Panax bipinnatifidus shares major bioactive ginsenosides with P. notoginseng and has a documented ethnomedicinal history in Sikkim, yet remains pharmacologically underexplored beyond basic antioxidant screening, with no comparative review bridging the two congeneric species. Purpose This hypothesis generating review applies network pharmacology to predict whether shared ginsenoside chemistry between Himalayan P. bipinnatifidus and Chinese P. notoginseng implies shared molecular targets and therapeutic relevance for TCM-based applications, explicitly as a basis for future experimental validation rather than a confirmed pharmacological finding. Methods Six ginsenosides were analyzed, five confirmed in Sikkim P. bipinnatifidus (Rg1, Re, Rg2, Rb1, Rd) and Notoginsenoside R1 as a characteristic of P. notoginseng . Target prediction used SwissTargetPrediction ( Homo sapiens , probability >0.1); protein-protein interaction networks were built in STRING (confidence ≥0.4); functional enrichment used Metascape (GO/KEGG, FDR q<0.05). Results Across the shared ginsenosides, seventeen unique targets were identified, with complete convergence (13/13) between Notoginsenoside R1 and the shared-compound profile, a finding consistent with, though not conclusively demonstrating, scaffold driven convergence, and flags it can’t be distinguished from the algorithm limitation used .STAT3, HSP90AA1, PTAFR, and EPHX2 emerged as hub targets, mapping onto inflammatory/immune, lipid/vascular-hemostatic, consistent with P. notoginseng 's blood-stasis application and proliferative/apoptotic domains. Existing literature suggests combined multi-target modulation of these targets may offer complementary value alongside established therapies, exemplified by clinical use of a PTAFR-antagonist natural product as add-on antiplatelet therapy in ischemic stroke. Conclusion Himalayan P. bipinnatifidus may share testable pharmacological potential with Sanqi ( P. notoginseng ), its pharmacopeial TCM counterpart, relevant for TCM-integrative and combination-therapy research. This review clarifies Himalayan Panax taxonomic complexity, identifies P. bipinnatifidus as Not Evaluated (NE) at the global IUCN level with an unknown conservation status, and outlines priorities for future phytochemical, pharmacological, and TCM-integrative research.