Spatially resolved metabolomics visualizes heterogeneous distribution of metabolites in lung tissue and the anti-pulmonary fibrosis effect of Prismatomeris connate extract

Pulmonary fibrosis (PF) is a chronic progressive end-stage lung disease. However, the mechanisms underlying the progression of this disease remain elusive. Presently, clinically employed drugs are scarce for the treatment of pulmonary fibrosis. Hence, there is an urgent need for developing novel drugs to address such diseases. properties. Our study found for the first time that a natural source of Prismatomeris connate ethyl acetate extract (HG-2) had a significant anti-pulmonary fibrosis effect by inhibiting the expression of the transforming growth factor beta 1/suppressor of mothers against decapentaplegic (TGF-β1/Smad) pathway. Network pharmacological analysis suggested that HG-2 had effects on tyrosine kinase phosphorylation, cellular response to reactive oxygen species, and extracellular matrix disassembly. Moreover, mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) was used to visualize the heterogeneous distribution of endogenous metabolites in lung tissue and reveal the anti-pulmonary fibrosis metabolic mechanism of HG-2, which was related to arginine synthesis, alanine, aspartic acid and glutamate metabolism, the down-regulation of arachidonic acid metabolism, and the up-regulation of glycerophospholipid metabolism. In conclusion, we elaborated on the relationship between metabolite distribution and the progression of PF, constructed the regulatory metabolic network of HG-2, and discovered the multi-target therapeutic effect of HG-2, which might be conducive to the development of new drugs for PF.