In Silico Insights into the Efficacy of Darjeeling Himalaya’s Traditional Fermented Beverages To Combat Various High-Altitude Sicknesses

Abstract

This in silico study has been designed to validate ethnomedicinal properties of some Himalayan fermented ethnic beverages against varied high-altitude sicknesses. Traditional beverages like tongba, chhyang, nigar and finger-millet raksi (supplemented with ethnomedicines like khokim and chimphing) were considered in this study which were sampled from villages situated in Singalila Ridge of the Himalayas. Seven major metabolites such as ethyl alpha-D-glucopyranoside; meranzin; auraptene; cis-vaccenic acid; cyclo(pro-gly); cyclo(leu-pro); and 2,3-dihydro-3,5-dihydroxy-6-methyl-4H-pyran-4-one were investigated in silico to provide insights to their efficiency in alleviating major altitude illnesses (pulmonary edema and hypoxia); high-altitude respiratory infections; pain or inflammation; cardiovascular problems; gastrointestinal diseases and disorders; and high-altitude neurological diseases and disorders. Computational tools such as Molinspiration Chemoinformatics, SwissADME, Molsoft program and vNN-ADMET were employed to evaluate physicochemical properties, pharmacokinetics and ADMET parameters. Binding affinities were computed using Auto Dock Tools. In silico pharmacokinetics and ADMET revealed bioactivity potentials of selected metabolites which are associated to treat high-altitude sickness. A total of 175 combinations of receptor-ligand docking interactions were considered out of which 141 combinations exhibited a binding energy score of ≤ -5 and 29 combinations scored ≤ -7. Outcome of this computational research affirm the effectiveness of high-altitude’s traditional drinks in healing high-altitudinal stresses.

Keywords

• ethnic beverages
• molecular docking
• admet
• high-altitude sickness