# Inhibiting the pathological changes of PASMCs is an effective approach for medicinal plants or secondary metabolites in treating pulmonary hypertension

**Authors:** Qi Liang, Hanghang Gou, Yi Zhu, Lin He, Liping Chen, Chuantao Zhang, Li Ai

PMC · DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2026.1725809 · Frontiers in Pharmacology · 2026-02-12

## TL;DR

This paper explores how medicinal plants and their compounds can treat pulmonary hypertension by targeting harmful changes in pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells.

## Contribution

The paper provides a focused analysis on how medicinal plants or secondary metabolites inhibit PASMCs' pathological changes to treat PH.

## Key findings

- Medicinal plants or secondary metabolites can inhibit PASMCs' abnormal proliferation and migration.
- Inhibiting PASMCs' pathological changes improves outcomes in pulmonary hypertension.
- Current PH treatments are limited, but plant-based therapies show promise.

## Abstract

Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a progressive cardiovascular disease characterized by increased pulmonary vascular resistance and structural remodeling of pulmonary vessels, leading to poor clinical outcomes and high mortality. pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells (PASMCs) migration, apoptosis and abnormal proliferation are the main pathological features leading to the occurrence of PH. Increasing evidence suggests that inhibition of PASMCs pathological changes contributes to the improvement of PH. However, the current clinical treatment of PH is limited, and medicinal plants or secondary metabolites are gradually recognized as potential treatment options for PH. Therefore, this article focuses on inhibiting the abnormal pathological changes of PASMCs, and analyzes and summarizes the mechanism and process of medicinal plants or secondary metabolites in the treatment of PH by inhibiting the abnormal proliferation of PASMCs, so as to provide a direction for the development of medicinal plants or secondary metabolites for the treatment of PH.

## Linked entities

- **Diseases:** pulmonary hypertension (MONDO:0005149)

## Full-text entities

- **Genes:** Jak2 (Janus kinase 2) [NCBI Gene 24514], MTOR (mechanistic target of rapamycin kinase) [NCBI Gene 2475] {aka FRAP, FRAP1, FRAP2, RAFT1, RAPT1, SKS}, Akt1 (AKT serine/threonine kinase 1) [NCBI Gene 24185] {aka Akt}, Bcl2l1 (Bcl2-like 1) [NCBI Gene 24888] {aka Bcl-xl, Bcl2l, Bclx, bcl-X}, Tagln (transgelin) [NCBI Gene 25123] {aka Sm22}, Fn1 (fibronectin 1) [NCBI Gene 25661] {aka FIBNEC, fn-1}, Hif1a (hypoxia inducible factor 1 subunit alpha) [NCBI Gene 29560] {aka HIF1-alpha, MOP1}, Mmp9 (matrix metallopeptidase 9) [NCBI Gene 81687], Spp1 (secreted phosphoprotein 1) [NCBI Gene 25353] {aka OSP}, Myocd (myocardin) [NCBI Gene 246297] {aka Mycd}, Cdkn1b (cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 1B) [NCBI Gene 83571] {aka CDKN4, Cdki1b, Kip1, P27KIP1, p27}, TGFB1 (transforming growth factor beta 1) [NCBI Gene 7040] {aka CAEND1, CED, DPD1, IBDIMDE, LAP, TGF-beta1}, Mfn2 (mitofusin 2) [NCBI Gene 64476] {aka HSG}, Mapk1 (mitogen activated protein kinase 1) [NCBI Gene 116590] {aka ERK-2, ERT1, Erk2, p42-MAPK}, Mmp2 (matrix metallopeptidase 2) [NCBI Gene 81686], BMP1 (bone morphogenetic protein 1) [NCBI Gene 649] {aka OI13, PCOLC, PCP, TLD}, Pdgfrb (platelet derived growth factor receptor beta) [NCBI Gene 24629] {aka PDGFR-1}, Tnc (tenascin C) [NCBI Gene 116640], Pparg (peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma) [NCBI Gene 25664] {aka PPARgamma2}, Lrp1 (LDL receptor related protein 1) [NCBI Gene 299858] {aka LRP-1}, Kras (KRAS proto-oncogene, GTPase) [NCBI Gene 24525] {aka K-ras, Kras2, c-Ki-ras, p21}, PIK3CB (phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate 3-kinase catalytic subunit beta) [NCBI Gene 5291] {aka P110BETA, PI3K, PI3KBETA, PIK3C1}, Egf (epidermal growth factor) [NCBI Gene 25313], Pvr (poliovirus receptor) [NCBI Gene 52118] {aka 3830421F03Rik, CD155, D7Ertd458e, HVED, PVS, Taa1}, Bcl2 (BCL2, apoptosis regulator) [NCBI Gene 24224] {aka Bcl-2}, Casp3 (caspase 3) [NCBI Gene 25402] {aka CPP32-beta, Lice, Yama}, Nfat5 (nuclear factor of activated T-cells 5) [NCBI Gene 307820] {aka NF-AT5, Nfat, TonEBP}, Nfe2l2 (NFE2 like bZIP transcription factor 2) [NCBI Gene 83619], Smad2 (SMAD family member 2) [NCBI Gene 29357] {aka Madh2}, Ephb1 (Eph receptor B1) [NCBI Gene 24338] {aka Ephb2, Erk, elk}, Bmp2 (bone morphogenetic protein 2) [NCBI Gene 29373], epidermal growth factor [NCBI Gene 108348113], Klf4 (KLF transcription factor 4) [NCBI Gene 114505] {aka GKLF}, Fgf2 (fibroblast growth factor 2) [NCBI Gene 54250] {aka Fgf-2, Fgf2a, bFGF}, Src (SRC proto-oncogene, non-receptor tyrosine kinase) [NCBI Gene 83805], Sirt1 (sirtuin 1) [NCBI Gene 309757] {aka Sir2}, AKT1 (AKT serine/threonine kinase 1) [NCBI Gene 207] {aka AKT, PKB, PKB-ALPHA, PRKBA, RAC, RAC-ALPHA}, Acta2 (actin alpha 2, smooth muscle) [NCBI Gene 81633], Atm (ATM serine/threonine kinase) [NCBI Gene 300711], Pik3cg (phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate 3-kinase, catalytic subunit gamma) [NCBI Gene 298947] {aka Pi3k}, Nos2 (nitric oxide synthase 2) [NCBI Gene 24599] {aka Nos2a, iNos}, p53-ps (Wistar clone pR53P1 p53 pseudogene) [NCBI Gene 301300], Stat3 (signal transducer and activator of transcription 3) [NCBI Gene 25125], BDNF (brain derived neurotrophic factor) [NCBI Gene 627] {aka ANON2, BULN2}, Mtor (mechanistic target of rapamycin kinase) [NCBI Gene 56718] {aka Frap1, RAFT1}, Ntrk1 (neurotrophic receptor tyrosine kinase 1) [NCBI Gene 59109] {aka Trk}, NTRK2 (neurotrophic receptor tyrosine kinase 2) [NCBI Gene 4915] {aka DEE58, EIEE58, GP145-TrkB, OBHD, TRKB, trk-B}, Ccr2 (C-C motif chemokine receptor 2) [NCBI Gene 60463], Casp9 (caspase 9) [NCBI Gene 58918] {aka Apaf3, Casp-9-CTD, Casp9_v1, Ice-Lap6, Mch6}, Skp2 (S-phase kinase associated protein 2) [NCBI Gene 294790] {aka RGD1562456}, Tgfb1 (transforming growth factor, beta 1) [NCBI Gene 59086] {aka Tgfb}, Bmpr2 (bone morphogenetic protein receptor type 2) [NCBI Gene 140590] {aka Bmpr-II}, Gsk3b (glycogen synthase kinase 3 beta) [NCBI Gene 84027], Smad3 (SMAD family member 3) [NCBI Gene 25631] {aka Madh3, Smad 3, mad3}, Pcna (proliferating cell nuclear antigen) [NCBI Gene 25737] {aka PCNAR, Pcna/cyclin}, Prkaa1 (protein kinase AMP-activated catalytic subunit alpha 1) [NCBI Gene 65248] {aka AMPKalpha1}, Ctnnb1 (catenin beta 1) [NCBI Gene 84353] {aka Catnb}, Ccnd1 (cyclin D1) [NCBI Gene 58919], Bax (BCL2 associated X, apoptosis regulator) [NCBI Gene 24887], Ccl2 (C-C motif chemokine ligand 2) [NCBI Gene 24770] {aka MCP-1, MCP1, Scya2, Sigje}
- **Diseases:** atherosclerosis (MESH:D050197), pulmonary arterial hypertension (MESH:D000081029), bacterial dysentery (MESH:D004403), cytotoxicity (MESH:D064420), pulmonary artery (MESH:D000071079), vascular injury (MESH:D057772), cardiovascular disease (MESH:D002318), artery (MESH:D012078), pulmonary artery remodeling (MESH:D066253), right ventricular hypertrophy (MESH:D017380), heart disease (MESH:D006331), PH (MESH:D006976), PASMCs (MESH:D018235), liver and intestinal diseases (MESH:D007410), vascular occlusion (MESH:D008641), gastroenteritis (MESH:D005759), inflammatory (MESH:D007249), fibrosis (MESH:D005355), acute lung injury (MESH:D055371), cancer (MESH:D009369), hypoxic (MESH:D002534), hypoxia (MESH:D000860), pulmonary vascular obstruction (MESH:D011655)
- **Chemicals:** naphthoquinone (MESH:D009285), Isorhanchophylline (-), NO (MESH:D009614), CAR (MESH:C073316), Pue (MESH:C033607), Sch B (MESH:C015499), monoterpene (MESH:D039821), Halofuginone (MESH:C010176), Tetrandrine (MESH:C009438), Crocin (MESH:C029036), Magnolol (MESH:C005498), isoflavone (MESH:D007529), Ligustrazine (MESH:C017953), oxymatrine (MESH:C037573), PLU (MESH:C014758), MCT (MESH:C000709826), Hydroxysafflor yellow A (MESH:C085278), cannabidiol (MESH:D002185), diterpenoid (MESH:D004224), flavonoid (MESH:D005419), BBR (MESH:D001599), Baicalin (MESH:C038044), Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (MESH:C045651), 1,8-Cineole (MESH:D000077591), Res (MESH:D012211), monocrotaline (MESH:D016686), Quercetin (MESH:D011794), ANDR (MESH:C030419), SAL (MESH:C009172), paeoniflorin (MESH:C015423), Tanshinone IIA (MESH:C021751), Alo (MESH:C062701), GCK (MESH:C112772), carotenoid (MESH:D002338), nitric oxide (MESH:D009569), Resveratrol (MESH:D000077185), norepinephrine (MESH:D009638)
- **Species:** Paeonia lactiflora (Chinese peony, species) [taxon 35924], Crocus sativus (saffron crocus, species) [taxon 82528], Rhodiola rosea (rose-root, species) [taxon 203015], Uncaria rhynchophylla (species) [taxon 43575], Dryobalanops (genus) [taxon 40589], Homo sapiens (human, species) [taxon 9606], Rattus norvegicus (brown rat, species) [taxon 10116], Pueraria montana var. lobata (kudzu, varietas) [taxon 3893], Andrographis paniculata (species) [taxon 175694], Sophora alopecuroides (species) [taxon 200492], Ophiopogon japonicus (species) [taxon 100506], Plumbago zeylanica (species) [taxon 76149], Schisandra chinensis (Chinese magnolia-vine, species) [taxon 50507], Salvia miltiorrhiza (Chinese salvia, species) [taxon 226208], Gardenia jasminoides (species) [taxon 114476], Coptis chinensis (species) [taxon 261450], Reynoutria japonica (huzhang, species) [taxon 488216], Scutellaria baicalensis (Baikal skullcap, species) [taxon 65409], Mus musculus (house mouse, species) [taxon 10090], Mentha canadensis (American wild mint, species) [taxon 294733], Panax ginseng (Asiatic ginseng, species) [taxon 4054]
- **Mutations:** F92A

## Full text

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## Figures

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## References

111 references — full list in the complete paper: https://tomesphere.com/paper/PMC12936028/full.md

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Source: https://tomesphere.com/paper/PMC12936028