Analyzing the Chinese landscape in anti-diabetic drug research: leading knowledge production institutions and thematic communities

Abstract

BackgroundThe discovery of anti-diabetic drugs is an active Chinese medicine research area. This study aims to map out anti-diabetic drug research in China using a network-based systemic approach based on co-authorship of academic publications. We focused on identifying leading knowledge production institutions, analyzing interactions among them, detecting communities with high internal associations, and exploring future research directions.MethodsTarget articles published in 2009–2013 under the topic “diabetes” and subject category “pharmacology & pharmacy,” with “China,” “Taiwan,” “Hong Kong,” or “Macao” (or “Macau”) in the authors’ address field were retrieved from the science citation index expanded database and their bibliographic information (e.g., article title, authors, keywords, and authors’ affiliation addresses) analyzed. A social network approach was used to construct an institutional collaboration network based on co-publications. Gephi software was used to visualize the network and relationships among institutes were analyzed using centrality measurements. Thematic analysis based on article keywords and Rsc value was applied to reveal the research hotspots and directions of network communities.ResultsThe top 50 institutions were identified; these included Shanghai Jiao Tong University, National Taiwan University, Peking University, and China Pharmaceutical University. Institutes from Taiwan tended to cooperate with institutes outside Taiwan, but those from mainland China showed low interest in external collaboration. Fourteen thematic communities were detected with the Louvain algorithm and further labeled by their high-frequency and characteristic keywords, such as Chinese medicines, diabetic complications, oxidative stress, pharmacokinetics, and insulin resistance. The keyword Chinese medicines comprised a range of Chinese medicine-related topics, including berberine, flavonoids, Astragaluspolysaccharide, emodin, and ginsenoside. These keywords suggest potential fields for further anti-diabetic drug research. The correlation of −0.641 (P = 0.013) between degree centrality and the Rsc value of non-core keywords indicates that communities concentrating on rare research fields are usually isolated by others and have a lower chance of collaboration.ConclusionWith a better understanding of the Chinese landscape in anti-diabetic drug research, researchers and scholars looking for experts and institutions in a specific research area can rapidly spot their target community, then select the most appropriate potential collaborator and suggest preferential research directions for future studies.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13020-016-0084-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Anti-diabetic effects and mechanisms of action of a Chinese herbal medicine preparation JQ-R in vitro and in diabetic KK Ay mice

“…In Chinese traditional medicine various herbs are often combined into a multi-herbal formula for enhancing efficacy, as well as reducing the toxicity or adverse effects. Many herbs have been reported to be a rich source of anti-diabetic ingredients 12 . Multi-herbal formulas could be a more promising strategy for the prevention and treatment of insulin resistance than single herbal medicines 13 .…”

Biologically active isoquinoline alkaloids covering 2014–2018

“…331 Berberine exerts anti-hyperglycemic and anti-dyslipidemic effects and can also ameliorate nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) via regulation of the hepatic SIRT1-UCP2 pathway. [331][332][333] By regulating cholesterol metabolism and inhibiting COX2-prostaglandin synthesis, the compound improved blockade of autophagic flux in the liver. 334 Moreover, berberine lessened the deposition of triglycerides in the liver following intraperitoneal injection or oral gavage.…”

“…Although its bioavailability was less than 1% in some studies, 329,330 the alkaloid was typically concentrated in the liver after oral administration 331 . Berberine exerts anti‐hyperglycemic and anti‐dyslipidemic effects and can also ameliorate nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) via regulation of the hepatic SIRT1–UCP2 pathway 331–333 . By regulating cholesterol metabolism and inhibiting COX2‐prostaglandin synthesis, the compound improved blockade of autophagic flux in the liver 334 .…”

Evaluation of value stream mapping (VSM) applicability to the oil and gas chain processes

“…Gephi software is open-source and free. It has been used to explore data and analyze the SLR s for different authors in various areas of study (Wei Leong et al, 2013;Deng et al, 2016;Hurst et al, 2016;Montoya Restrepo et al, 2016;Venkatesakumar and Pachayappan, 2017;Rajagopal et al, 2017).…”