Ginkgo Seed as Medicine-Food Homology for Migraine: Network Pharmacology and Molecular Docking Insights

As a medicinal and edible homologous substance, ginkgo seeds' historical application in headache management, documented from Diannan Materia Medica to contemporary clinical practice, is based on empirical evidence. This study employed network pharmacology and molecular docking to explore the anti-migraine mechanisms of ginkgo seeds. In total, 10 related signal pathways (cancer pathway, lipid and atherosclerosis, Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinase-Protein Kinase B (PI3K-AKT) signaling pathway, etc.) and 10 hub genes were identified through Gene Ontology (GO) functional annotation, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment, and in the inprotein-protein interaction (PPI) network. Molecular docking results demonstrated that formononetin, stigmasterol, and beta-sitosterol in ginkgo seeds can interact with 10 core targets (average binding energy ≤ -3.17 kcal/mol). This study analyzed the related pathways and targets of ginkgo seeds in the treatment of migraines, as well as the docking test of small-molecule ligands and target protein receptors, which provides a reference with which to find and explore effective preventive health foods for migraines.