This study aims to investigate the ameliorative effects and mechanisms of Salviae Miltiorrhizae Radix et Rhizoma-Astragali Radix (SMR-AR) in the treatment of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) based on network pharmacology and animal experiments.Firstly,we obtained the active ingredients of SMR-AR through TCMSP,HERB,PubChem,GeneCards and other databases,predicted the target of action of the herb pair,and screened the disease targets of PCOS,and then we used the weishengxin platform,the STRING database,and the Cytoscape 3.9.1 software to perform the topological analyses to view the potential effects of SMR-AR in the treatment of PCOS,and GO and KEGG enrichment analyses of potential targets were performed using the DAVID database.Finally,experimental validation was carried out by establishing a rat model of PCOS.A total of 109 active ingredients were retrieved by SMR-AR,with a total of 850 predicted targets of action,through intersection mapping with 2 169 PCOS disease targets,287 potential targets of SMR-AR for the treatment of PCOS were obtained,which mainly involving cancer,phosphatidylin-ositol-3-kinase/protein kinase B (PI3K/AKT) pathway,proteoglycans in cancer,lipids and atherosclerosis,microRNAs in cancer,chemical carcinogenesis-receptor activation,kaposi sarcoma-associated herpesvirus infection,focal adhesion and other signaling pathways.The results of animal experiments showed that SMR-AR significantly down-regulated of testosterone,luteinising hormone,fasting blood glucose and fasting insulin levels in serum of PCOS rats,resulting in significantly lower values assessed by the homeostatic model of insulin resistance,significantly up-regulated follicle stimulating hormone levels in serum of PCOS rats.The histopathological changes of ovarian tissue were significantly improved,and the protein expression levels of PI3K,p-AKT/AKT,and cyclin dependent kinase 4 in the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway was promoted in ovarian tissue.In summary,this study preliminarily reveals that SMR-AR could be related to the PI3K-AKT signaling pathway through a multi-component and multi-targeted pathway for the treatment of PCOS,which could promote follicular development and maturation,improve sex hormone imbalance and regulate glucose metabolism in PCOS rats.