Integrated network pharmacology and in vivo evidence reveal vitamin E's multi-organ protective effects in acute lung injury and secondary enteritis.

INTRODUCTION: Acute lung injury (ALI), characterized by diffuse alveolar damage and inflammation, can trigger secondary enteritis through systemic interactions, aligning with the established lung-gut axis concept-a bidirectional communication system underpinned by shared mechanisms including inflammation, oxidative stress, and barrier dysfunction; however, the molecular links remain unclear, and vitamin E's role in this axis lacks systematic investigation. METHODS: By integrating GeneCards database screening, protein-protein interaction (PPI) network, and pathway analyses. RESULTS: we identified 34 "ALI-Enteritis ∩ Vitamin E" related core genes. In an LPS-induced ALI mouse model, vitamin E alleviated lung pathology while repairing intestinal mucosal barrier through modulating M1/M2 macrophage polarization and suppressing excessive neutrophil recruitment. This study first systematically delineates molecular commonalities between ALI and enteritis, identifies 34 shared therapeutic targets, and demonstrates vitamin E's coordinated multi-organ protection via targeting these pathways. DISCUSSION: offering novel insights into the "lung-intestine axis" and a scientific basis for its nutritional-immunomodulatory intervention in multi-organ injury.