Kangjie li , Jie Wang , Ming Dang , Runxin Ren , Maomao Fu , Jing Wang , Qiao Zhang , Chongbo Zhao
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Recent studies have also highlighted TCM's ability to regulate gut microbiota, offering a promising avenue for NAFLD management. To better understand the evolving role of TCM in treating NAFLD, a comprehensive analysis of existing research is necessary.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>In this study, the Web of Science database was chosen as the primary data source to investigate the treatment of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) using traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Specifically, the search focused on English articles and review articles indexed in the SCI-E and SSCI databases, spanning from January 1, 2012, to October 30, 2024. The search strategy employed the following formula: TS = (“non-alcoholic fatty liver disease” OR “Metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease” OR “NAFLD”) AND TS = (“TCM” OR “Herbal medicines”). The analysis encompassed various aspects such as authors, keywords, journals, countries, institutions, and references. For this purpose, analytical tools including VOSviewer, Bibliometrix, and CiteSpace were utilized to systematically evaluate the gathered data.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>A total of 306 documents were retrieved, indicating a rising trend in the number of publications, which is expected to accelerate in the future. China is at the forefront in terms of both the quantity of publications and total citations, demonstrating strong international collaboration. Within China, Shanghai University of TCM and Chengdu University of TCM are leading institutions, having established a stable group of collaborating authors. The top 10 key journals account for 49.02 % of the publications, with Frontiers in Pharmacology being the most prolific, while the World Journal of Gastroenterology boasts the highest average number of citations. The most frequently cited journals are Hepatology, Journal of Hepatology, and Journal of Ethnopharmacology. Keyword analysis reveals that high-frequency terms such as steatohepatitis are prevalent, addressing topics like pathogenesis, indirect therapeutic effects, and molecular biological mechanisms. Recent outbreak word analysis highlights 'cell' and 'steatohepatitis' as current hotspots, with 'NASH' anticipated to be a focal point in 2024.</div></div><div><h3>Discussion</h3><div>The number of publications on TCM treatments for NAFLD has steadily increased, with TCM exhibiting therapeutic effects through various mechanisms, including anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, lipid metabolism modulation, and gut microbiota regulation. The anti-inflammatory effects primarily result from the inhibition of inflammatory signaling pathways. Antioxidant properties arise from bioactive compounds in TCM and their modulation of related pathways. Lipid metabolism improvement occurs through the regulation of spleen and stomach functions, promoting lipolysis. Furthermore, TCM regulates intestinal microbiota, restoring microbial balance and enhancing intestinal barrier function. Future research should focus on the synergistic mechanisms underlying these multiple pathways to develop more comprehensive therapeutic strategies. Additionally, expanding the data sources for further analysis is crucial. However, this study has limitations, including reliance on a limited selection of databases and keywords from Web of Science, which may not capture all relevant literature, and the potential bias in the bibliometric analysis.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":101013,"journal":{"name":"Pharmacological Research - Modern Chinese Medicine","volume":"14 ","pages":"Article 100585"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0000,"publicationDate":"2025-02-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Pharmacological Research - Modern Chinese Medicine","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667142525000144","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"","JCRName":"","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Background
The global incidence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is rising due to changes in modern lifestyle and dietary habits, making it one of the leading causes of chronic liver disease. NAFLD can progress to more severe liver conditions, imposing significant economic burdens. Currently, no FDA-approved drugs are available for its treatment. However, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has gained attention for its unique theoretical framework and therapeutic strategies, particularly its potential to improve liver health by modulating liver function. Recent studies have also highlighted TCM's ability to regulate gut microbiota, offering a promising avenue for NAFLD management. To better understand the evolving role of TCM in treating NAFLD, a comprehensive analysis of existing research is necessary.
Methods
In this study, the Web of Science database was chosen as the primary data source to investigate the treatment of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) using traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Specifically, the search focused on English articles and review articles indexed in the SCI-E and SSCI databases, spanning from January 1, 2012, to October 30, 2024. The search strategy employed the following formula: TS = (“non-alcoholic fatty liver disease” OR “Metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease” OR “NAFLD”) AND TS = (“TCM” OR “Herbal medicines”). The analysis encompassed various aspects such as authors, keywords, journals, countries, institutions, and references. For this purpose, analytical tools including VOSviewer, Bibliometrix, and CiteSpace were utilized to systematically evaluate the gathered data.
Results
A total of 306 documents were retrieved, indicating a rising trend in the number of publications, which is expected to accelerate in the future. China is at the forefront in terms of both the quantity of publications and total citations, demonstrating strong international collaboration. Within China, Shanghai University of TCM and Chengdu University of TCM are leading institutions, having established a stable group of collaborating authors. The top 10 key journals account for 49.02 % of the publications, with Frontiers in Pharmacology being the most prolific, while the World Journal of Gastroenterology boasts the highest average number of citations. The most frequently cited journals are Hepatology, Journal of Hepatology, and Journal of Ethnopharmacology. Keyword analysis reveals that high-frequency terms such as steatohepatitis are prevalent, addressing topics like pathogenesis, indirect therapeutic effects, and molecular biological mechanisms. Recent outbreak word analysis highlights 'cell' and 'steatohepatitis' as current hotspots, with 'NASH' anticipated to be a focal point in 2024.
Discussion
The number of publications on TCM treatments for NAFLD has steadily increased, with TCM exhibiting therapeutic effects through various mechanisms, including anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, lipid metabolism modulation, and gut microbiota regulation. The anti-inflammatory effects primarily result from the inhibition of inflammatory signaling pathways. Antioxidant properties arise from bioactive compounds in TCM and their modulation of related pathways. Lipid metabolism improvement occurs through the regulation of spleen and stomach functions, promoting lipolysis. Furthermore, TCM regulates intestinal microbiota, restoring microbial balance and enhancing intestinal barrier function. Future research should focus on the synergistic mechanisms underlying these multiple pathways to develop more comprehensive therapeutic strategies. Additionally, expanding the data sources for further analysis is crucial. However, this study has limitations, including reliance on a limited selection of databases and keywords from Web of Science, which may not capture all relevant literature, and the potential bias in the bibliometric analysis.
由于现代生活方式和饮食习惯的改变,全球非酒精性脂肪性肝病(NAFLD)的发病率正在上升,使其成为慢性肝病的主要原因之一。NAFLD可发展为更严重的肝脏疾病,造成重大的经济负担。目前,没有fda批准的药物可用于治疗这种疾病。然而,中医因其独特的理论框架和治疗策略而受到关注,特别是其通过调节肝功能来改善肝脏健康的潜力。最近的研究也强调了中药调节肠道微生物群的能力,为NAFLD的治疗提供了一条有希望的途径。为了更好地了解中医在治疗NAFLD中的作用,有必要对现有研究进行综合分析。方法本研究选择Web of Science数据库作为主要数据源,探讨中药治疗非酒精性脂肪性肝病(NAFLD)的疗效。具体来说,检索集中在SCI-E和SSCI数据库中检索的英文文章和综述文章,时间跨度为2012年1月1日至2024年10月30日。搜索策略采用以下公式:TS =(“非酒精性脂肪性肝病”或“代谢功能障碍相关脂肪性肝病”或“NAFLD”)和TS =(“中医”或“草药”)。分析包括作者、关键词、期刊、国家、机构和参考文献等各个方面。为此,利用VOSviewer、Bibliometrix、CiteSpace等分析工具对收集到的数据进行系统评价。结果共检索到306篇文献,发文量呈上升趋势,并有望在未来加速上升。中国在论文发表量和总引用量方面均处于世界前列,显示出强有力的国际合作。在国内,上海中医药大学和成都中医药大学是领先的院校,建立了稳定的合作作者群体。排名前10位的重点期刊发文量占49.02%,其中《药理学前沿》发文量最多,《世界胃肠病学杂志》平均被引次数最高。最常被引用的期刊是《肝病学》、《肝病学杂志》和《民族药理学杂志》。关键词分析显示,脂肪性肝炎等高频术语普遍存在,涉及发病机制,间接治疗作用和分子生物学机制等主题。最近的疫情词汇分析强调,“细胞性”和“脂肪性肝炎”是当前的热点,预计“NASH”将在2024年成为焦点。中医药治疗NAFLD的论文数量稳步增加,中医药通过多种机制显示出治疗效果,包括抗炎、抗氧化、调节脂质代谢和调节肠道微生物群。抗炎作用主要是由于抑制炎症信号通路。抗氧化特性源于中药中的生物活性化合物及其调控的相关途径。脂质代谢的改善是通过调节脾胃功能,促进脂质分解来实现的。此外,中药调节肠道菌群,恢复微生物平衡,增强肠道屏障功能。未来的研究应侧重于这些多种途径的协同机制,以制定更全面的治疗策略。此外,扩展数据源以进行进一步分析是至关重要的。然而,本研究存在局限性,包括依赖于Web of Science有限的数据库和关键词选择,可能无法捕获所有相关文献,以及文献计量学分析中的潜在偏差。