Scoping review of epigenetics on neurodegenerative diseases: research frontiers and publication status

Aims: Epigenetics has significantly evolved and emerged as important players in the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases. However, a scientometric synthesis of such changes over time is currently lacking.

Methods: We conducted a comprehensive search of the Web of Science Core Collection from inception until November 5, 2022, using appropriate keywords. Our primary objective was to employ scientometric analysis to depict changes in keywords over time and to assess the structure and credibility of clusters. Additionally, we examined the network of research (countries, institutions, and authors) using CiteSpace and VOSviewer.

Results: We identified 25 clusters with well-structured networks (Q = 0.82) and highly credible clustering (S = 0.91) from 16,181 articles published between 1999 and 2022. Our findings are as follows: (a) the literature and research interest concerning the epigenetics of neurodegenerative diseases are continuously growing; (b) the three most productive countries are the USA, China, and Germany; (c) international collaborative relationships exist, alongside small, isolated collaboration networks of individual institutions.

Conclusion: The number and impact of global publications on the epigenetics of neurodegenerative diseases have expanded rapidly over the past 20 years. This review provides valuable guidelines for researchers interested in neurodegenerative diseases research.