94% of researchers rate our articles as excellent or good
Learn more about the work of our research integrity team to safeguard the quality of each article we publish.
Find out more
SYSTEMATIC REVIEW article
Front. Hum. Neurosci.
Sec. Brain Health and Clinical Neuroscience
Volume 19 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2025.1548701
This article is part of the Research Topic Advances in Neurodevelopmental and Neurodegenerative Disease Research: Focus on Innovative Human-Relevant Brain Research View all articles
Human induced pluripotent stem cell models for Alzheimer's disease research: a bibliometric analysis
Provisionally accepted
Yuning Sun 1,2
Zhilong Liu 2 Zongbo Zhang 3 Yufeng Kang 1,2 Xinlian Wang 3 Yiping Zhang 3
YAN LIU 3* Pei Zhao 1,2*- 1 College of Pharmacy, Gansu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou, Gansu Province, China
- 2 Gansu Provincial Hospital, Lanzhou, Gansu Province, China
- 3 School of Pharmacy, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu Province, China
Introduction: Alzheimer's disease (AD), the leading cause of dementia, remains without adequate treatment. Current models do not fully replicate human physiology and pathology. The advent of human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC) technology offers a novel approach to studying AD. Methods: Our study conducted a bibliometric analysis to assess the application and development of hiPSC technology in AD research. We retrieved 531 articles on hiPSC models of AD from the Web of Science Core Collection, published between January 2010 and June 2024. CiteSpace and VOSviewer were used to analyze authorship, geographic contributions, journal influence, and citation patterns. Results: Our findings reveal a steady increase in publications over 14 years, with the United States leading in contributions, followed by China. Li-Huei Tsai from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a prominent researcher. PLOS ONE emerges as the most influential journal. Research trends have focused on inflammation, astrocytes, microglia, apolipoprotein E (ApoE), and tau. Discussion: Bibliometric analysis is crucial in identifying research gaps and trends and guiding future studies to address unmet needs in understanding and modeling human physiology and pathology. Leveraging hiPSC models to investigate the molecular mechanisms of familial and sporadic AD is expected to provide a crucial foundation for developing future treatment strategies. Conclusion:In summary, the bibliometric findings from this study provide a comprehensive overview of the current research landscape in hiPSC models for AD. It also highlights emerging trends and research gaps, crucial for guiding future research efforts, particularly in exploring novel therapeutic targets and improving understanding of disease mechanisms.
Keywords: Alzheimer's disease (AD), Human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC), Bibliometrics, Inflammation, Apolipoprotein E (APOE)
Received: 20 Dec 2024; Accepted: 06 Mar 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Sun, Liu, Zhang, Kang, Wang, Zhang, LIU and Zhao. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
YAN LIU, School of Pharmacy, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730020, Gansu Province, China
Pei Zhao, College of Pharmacy, Gansu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou, 730101, Gansu Province, China
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.