Abstract:  We used network pharmacology and molecular docking technology to study the  mechanism of Wutou decoction (WTD) combined  with three traditional Chinese medicines in combating  rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and validated the pathways and targets through cell experiment. The  results show that the  PI3K-Akt signaling pathway and NF-κB signaling pathway are key pathways. The targets  such as AKT1,EGFR,HIF1A and NFKB1 play important roles in the anti RA effect of WTD. The  research results revealed the  key pathways for combating RA and elucidated the relevant  mechanisms of compatibility between WTD and three traditional Chinese medicines,  providing a new direction for the study of traditional Chinese herbal medicine compatibility mechanisms.

Key words: network pharmacology, rheumatoid arthritis, Wutou decoction, compatibility, molecular docking