Linsun Lin, Ziyi Guo, Qiuzhong Zhan, Peigang Fang, Haojun Shi, Yanchen Feng, Sheng Tian, Lu Xiao, Min Chen, Tao Wang
{"title":"A Bibliometric Analysis of Research on Natural Medicines for Depression from 2004 to 2024.","authors":"Linsun Lin, Ziyi Guo, Qiuzhong Zhan, Peigang Fang, Haojun Shi, Yanchen Feng, Sheng Tian, Lu Xiao, Min Chen, Tao Wang","doi":"10.2147/JMDH.S548269","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>Depression imposes a severe global health burden. Natural medicines offer multi-target therapeutic potential, but a comprehensive bibliometric assessment of this field is lacking. This study analyzes the research landscape from 2004 to 2024 to map global contributions, collaboration networks, and evolving trends, thereby providing an evidence-based roadmap for future research.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We systematically retrieved publications on natural product-based medicines for depression from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) between 2004 and 2024. Bibliometric analysis was performed using CiteSpace, VOSviewer, and the R package \"bibliometrix\" to examine publication trends, collaboration networks, co-citation patterns, and keyword hotspots.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Our analysis of 3,610 publications from 92 countries/regions revealed China's dominant leadership in both productivity and collaborative influence. The Beijing University of Chinese Medicine was identified as the most productive institution, while the Journal of Ethnopharmacology and Phytomedicine were the most cited journals. Key prolific authors included Qin Xuemei and Zhang Yi, and foundational works by researchers such as Porsolt and Sarris Jerome were the most frequently cited. Keyword clustering analysis identified three major research themes: mechanistic investigations (eg, \"neuroinflammation\", \"oxidative stress\"), phytochemical analysis (eg, \"flavonoids\", \"alkaloids\"), and clinical applications (eg, \"randomized controlled trial\"). The field has evolved from foundational preclinical models toward a stronger focus on clinical translational research.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>This bibliometric study highlights China's central role in the research on natural medicines for depression and delineates the evolution of major research themes. The findings underscore the necessity for enhanced international collaboration and more rigorous clinical trials to validate the efficacy of bioactive compounds, which is crucial for advancing novel antidepressant drug development.</p>","PeriodicalId":16357,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Multidisciplinary Healthcare","volume":"18 ","pages":"6257-6274"},"PeriodicalIF":2.4000,"publicationDate":"2025-10-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12499365/pdf/","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of Multidisciplinary Healthcare","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.2147/JMDH.S548269","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"2025/1/1 0:00:00","PubModel":"eCollection","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"HEALTH CARE SCIENCES & SERVICES","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Objective: Depression imposes a severe global health burden. Natural medicines offer multi-target therapeutic potential, but a comprehensive bibliometric assessment of this field is lacking. This study analyzes the research landscape from 2004 to 2024 to map global contributions, collaboration networks, and evolving trends, thereby providing an evidence-based roadmap for future research.
Methods: We systematically retrieved publications on natural product-based medicines for depression from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) between 2004 and 2024. Bibliometric analysis was performed using CiteSpace, VOSviewer, and the R package "bibliometrix" to examine publication trends, collaboration networks, co-citation patterns, and keyword hotspots.
Results: Our analysis of 3,610 publications from 92 countries/regions revealed China's dominant leadership in both productivity and collaborative influence. The Beijing University of Chinese Medicine was identified as the most productive institution, while the Journal of Ethnopharmacology and Phytomedicine were the most cited journals. Key prolific authors included Qin Xuemei and Zhang Yi, and foundational works by researchers such as Porsolt and Sarris Jerome were the most frequently cited. Keyword clustering analysis identified three major research themes: mechanistic investigations (eg, "neuroinflammation", "oxidative stress"), phytochemical analysis (eg, "flavonoids", "alkaloids"), and clinical applications (eg, "randomized controlled trial"). The field has evolved from foundational preclinical models toward a stronger focus on clinical translational research.
Conclusion: This bibliometric study highlights China's central role in the research on natural medicines for depression and delineates the evolution of major research themes. The findings underscore the necessity for enhanced international collaboration and more rigorous clinical trials to validate the efficacy of bioactive compounds, which is crucial for advancing novel antidepressant drug development.
期刊介绍:
The Journal of Multidisciplinary Healthcare (JMDH) aims to represent and publish research in healthcare areas delivered by practitioners of different disciplines. This includes studies and reviews conducted by multidisciplinary teams as well as research which evaluates or reports the results or conduct of such teams or healthcare processes in general. The journal covers a very wide range of areas and we welcome submissions from practitioners at all levels and from all over the world. Good healthcare is not bounded by person, place or time and the journal aims to reflect this. The JMDH is published as an open-access journal to allow this wide range of practical, patient relevant research to be immediately available to practitioners who can access and use it immediately upon publication.