Natural Compounds and Targeted Agents in Acute Pancreatitis: Mechanism Validation, Multi-Omics Translation, and Clinical Evidence

Acute pancreatitis is a common and potentially life-threatening inflammatory disorder of the pancreas, with no specific pharmacological therapy currently established for routine clinical use. Supportive care remains the cornerstone of management, while disease progression is driven by complex mechanisms involving premature trypsinogen activation, calcium overload, mitochondrial dysfunction, acinar cell death, endothelial injury, immune dysregulation, and systemic inflammation. Natural compounds (pure, isolated, well-characterized natural product) and synthetic targeted agents have shown promising protective effects in experimental acute pancreatitis. However, many candidate therapies remain limited by insufficient target validation, unclear pharmacological mechanisms, heterogeneous preclinical models, and a lack of robust translational and clinical evidence.This Research Topic aims to provide a focused platform for studies that bridge the gap between mechanistic discovery and therapeutic translation in acute pancreatitis. We seek to address how natural compounds and targeted agents can be systematically identified, mechanistically validated, and advanced toward clinical application. Particular emphasis will be placed on studies that move beyond descriptive pharmacological effects and provide clear evidence for target engagement, pathway modulation, dose-response relationships, and disease-relevant outcomes. Integration of multi-omics technologies, artificial intelligence-assisted screening, network pharmacology, molecular docking, organoid systems, animal models, patient cohorts, and clinical trial data is encouraged. By bringing together experimental, translational, and clinical evidence, this Research Topic aims to promote a more rigorous framework for developing mechanism-based therapeutic strategies for acute pancreatitis. We welcome submissions addressing pure, isolated, and well-characterized natural compounds, repurposed small-molecule drugs, and synthetic targeted agents for the prevention or treatment of acute pancreatitis and its local or systemic complications. Standardized herbal extracts, botanical mixtures, and other multi-component or biological preparations are outside the scope of this Research Topic. Specific themes include, but are not limited to, target discovery and validation; calcium signaling, mitochondrial injury, oxidative stress, cell death, inflammatory and immune pathways; endothelial dysfunction and microcirculatory injury; gut barrier dysfunction and microbiota; multi-omics profiling; biomarker-guided efficacy evaluation; pharmacokinetics and safety assessment; organoid and advanced disease models; artificial intelligence-assisted compound screening; and clinical evidence from observational studies, randomized controlled trials, or trial sub-studies. Manuscript types of interest include Original Research, Reviews, Mini Reviews, Systematic Reviews, Methods, and Perspectives. Topic editors: Wenhao Cai, Luca Antonioli, Michele Biagioli, Wenhua He, Di Wu Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/83299/natural-compounds-and-targeted-agents-in-acute-pancreatitis-mechanism-validation-multi-omics-translation-and-clinical-evidence