Plant secondary metabolites possess significant antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, but their complex polypharmacological mechanisms remain poorly understood. Network pharmacology has emerged as a powerful systems-level approach for investigating multi-target interactions of natural products. This review systematically analyzes network pharmacology applications in elucidating the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory mechanisms of plant metabolites, evaluating concordance between computational predictions and experimental validation. A comprehensive literature search was conducted across major databases (2015–2025), focusing on network pharmacology studies with experimental validation. Analysis revealed remarkable convergence toward common molecular mechanisms, despite diverse chemical structures. For antioxidant activities, the Nrf2/KEAP1/ARE pathway emerged as the most frequently validated mechanism, along with PI3K/AKT, MAPK, and NF-κB signaling. Anti-inflammatory mechanisms consistently involved NF-κB, MAPK, and PI3K/AKT pathways. Key targets, including AKT1, TNF-α, COX-2, NFKB1, and RELA, were repeatedly identified. Flavonoids, phenolic acids, and terpenoids dominated as bioactive compounds. Molecular docking studies supported predicted interactions, with experimental validation showing good concordance for pathway modulation and cytokine regulation. Network pharmacology provides a valuable framework for investigating the complex bioactivities of plant metabolites. The convergence toward common regulatory hubs suggests that natural compounds achieve protective effects by modulating central nodes that integrate redox balance and inflammatory responses. Despite limitations, including database dependency, integrating network pharmacology with experimental validation accelerates mechanistic understanding in natural-product drug discovery.

Objectives: The increasing prevalence of electronic cigarettes (e‑cigarette) use among adolescents has raised concerns about potential high‑risk behaviors, particularly the addition of psychoactive substances to e‑cigarette liquid (e‑liquids). This study examines the association between...

Lung, breast, colorectal and prostate cancer account for over 41% of global cancer incidence and 39% of mortality, yet durable control of advanced disease remains limited. Plant secondary metabolites are promising multitarget leads, but their polypharmacological mechanisms cannot be captured by single-target approaches, and the evidence across these four cancers has not been synthesised within a unified framework. This review provides an integrated comparative analysis of network-pharmacology studies of plant-derived anticancer compounds across the four cancers, cataloguing phytochemical profiles, identifying shared and cancer-specific targets, quantifying the concordance between computational predictions and experimental validation, and appraising the translational gap. A systematic search of biomedical databases (2016–2026) identified 101 peer-reviewed studies (40 breast, 33 colorectal, 24 lung, and 14 prostate) combining network pharmacology with experimental validation. AKT1, EGFR, TP53, STAT3, MAPK1/3, CASP3, and HSP90AA1 recurred as cross-cancer hub genes, with the phosphoinositide 3-kinase/AKT and mitogen-activated protein kinase pathways most frequently implicated. Cancer-specific signatures comprised the androgen receptor in prostate, the oestrogen receptor and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 in breast, β-catenin/Wnt in colorectal, and the epidermal growth factor receptor/RAS axis with epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition effectors in lung cancer. Flavonoids, terpenoids, alkaloids, and polyphenols predominated. The persistent validation gap remains the principal barrier to translation.

Background/Objectives: The certification of hospitals as colorectal cancer centers aims to improve treatment quality, but evidence supporting its effectiveness remains limited. This study evaluated the impact of certification on treatment outcomes for rectal cancer patients in Germany. Methods: We conducted a retrospective analysis of 14,905 patients with primary rectal cancer (UICC Stages I-III) treated at 271 hospitals. Treatment outcomes were compared between certified colorectal cancer centers (3624 patients in 55 hospitals) and non-certified hospitals (11,281 patients in 216 hospitals). Additionally, a subset analysis examined outcomes before and after certification within the same institutions. Results: Certified centers demonstrated higher utilization of preoperative imaging (endorectal ultrasound: 70.7% vs. 58.2%, p < 0.001; pelvic MRI: 39.1% vs. 28.5%, p < 0.001) and lower rates of intraoperative complications (4.6% vs. 6.2%, p < 0.001). Surgical quality indicators, including M.E.R.C.U.R.Y. classification (Grade 1: 86.5% both groups, p = 0.620) and anastomotic leakage rates (11.3% vs. 11.9%, p = 0.407), were comparable between certified and non-certified hospitals. Despite treating patients with more favorable tumor stages, certified centers showed no significant advantage in 5-year overall survival (82.8% vs. 82.0%, p = 0.880) or 30-day mortality (2.6% both groups, p = 0.869). Hospital stays were marginally shorter in certified centers (19.46 vs. 20.24 days, p < 0.001). Conclusions: While certification was associated with improved adherence to diagnostic protocols and reduced intraoperative complications, it did not significantly impact surgical quality or long-term survival outcomes. These findings suggest that certification alone may not guarantee superior treatment quality, as hospitals participating in quality assurance programs achieved comparable results without formal certification.