Worldwide research trends on tumor burden and immunotherapy: a bibliometric analysis.

Various immunotherapy has been greatly applied to comprehensive treatment of malignant cancer under different degrees of tumor burden. Scientific researchers have gained considerable progress in the relationship between immunotherapy and tumor burden in recent years. This review aimed to explore the prospect and developing trends in the field of tumor burden and immunotherapy from a bibliometric perspective. Articles about tumor burden and immunotherapy were collected from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) (retrieved on 3 January 2023). The R package 'Bibliometrix' analyzed the primary bibliometric features and created a three-filed plot to display the relationship between institutions, countries, and keywords. VOSviewer was used for co-authorship analysis, co-occurrence analysis, and their visualization. And CiteSpace calculated the citation burst references and keywords. A total of 1030 publications were retrieved from 35 years of scientific researches. The United States (US) and China published the most articles. The most productive journals were Cancer Immunology Immunotherapy and Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer . The top one institution of the highest output was University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. The hot keywords of strong citation burst strength in recent years were 'nivolumab', 'tumor microenvironment', and 'immune checkpoint inhibitor'. The most popular tumor type is melanoma. This bibliometric analysis mapped a basic knowledge structure. The field of tumor burden and immunotherapy is entering a rapid growing stage and keeping it value for future research.

Development and validation of web-based nomograms for predicting survival status in patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma depending on the surgical status: a SEER database analysis.

This study aimed to develop and validate prognostic nomograms that can estimate the probability of 1-, 3- and 5-year overall survival (OS) as well as cancer-specific survival (CSS) for Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICCA) patients. Clinical data of 1446 patients diagnosed with ICCA between 2010 and 2017 from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database were analyzed. In both the OS and the CSS group, the training cohort and validation cohort were divided into a 7:3 ratio. Age, sex, AJCC T stage, AJCC N stage, AJCC M stage, surgical status, and tumor grade were selected as independent prognostic risk factors to build the nomograms. To compare the efficacy of predicting 1-, 3-, and 5-year OS and CSS rates of the nomogram with the 8th edition of the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) staging system, we evaluated the Harrell's index of concordance (C-index), area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) and decision curve analysis (DCA) in both cohorts. The results showed the nomogram for 1-, 3-, and 5-year OS and CSS prediction performed better than the AJCC staging system. In the subgroup analysis for patients could not receive surgery as the primary treatment. We developed two nomograms for predicting the 1-, and 2-year OS and CSS rates following the same analysis procedure. Results indicate that the performance of both nomograms, which contained sex, AJCC T stage, AJCC M stage, chemotherapy, and tumor grade and prognostic factors, was also superior to the AJCC staging system. Meanwhile, four dynamic network-based nomograms were published. The survival analysis showed the survival rate of patients classified as high-risk based on the nomogram score was significantly lower compared to those categorized as low-risk (P < 0.0001). Finally, accurate and convenient nomograms were established to assist clinicians in making more personalized prognosis predictions for ICCA patients.

Unravelling the liver-brain connection: A two-sample Mendelian randomization study investigating the causal relationship between NAFLD and cortical structure.

BACKGROUND: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has been linked to cognitive decline and neuropsychiatric conditions, implying a potential connection between NAFLD and brain health. However, the causal association between NAFLD and cortical changes remains uncertain. This study aimed to examine the causal impact of NAFLD on cortical structures using a two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) approach. METHODS: Summary data from genome-wide association studies (GWAS) for NAFLD were gathered from large-scale cohorts. Surface area (SA) and cortical thickness (TH) measurements were derived from Enhancing Neuro Imaging Genetics through Meta-Analysis (ENIGMA) Consortium magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data of 33,992 participants. Inverse-variance weighted (IVW) served as the primary method. Additional sensitivity analyses, including MR Pleiotropy RESidual Sum and Outlier (MR-PRESSO), MR-Egger, and weighted median procedures, were conducted to detect heterogeneity and pleiotropy. RESULTS: Our MR analysis revealed that NAFLD led to notable alterations in cortical structures, particularly in the pars orbitalis gyrus. Specifically, genetically predicted NAFLD was linked to a decrease in TH (ß = -0.008 mm, 95 % CI: -0.013 mm to -0.004 mm, P = 3.00 × 10-4) within this region. No significant heterogeneity and pleiotropy were identified. CONCLUSION: The two-sample MR study supports the existence of a liver-brain axis by demonstrating a causal association between NAFLD and changes in cortical structures. These findings emphasize the potential association between NAFLD and brain health, which could have implications for preventing and treating cognitive deficits and neuropsychiatric conditions in patients with NAFLD.

Worldwide productivity and research trend of publications concerning tumor immune microenvironment (TIME): a bibliometric study.

BACKGROUND: As the complexity and diversity of the tumor immune microenvironment (TIME) are becoming better understood, burgeoning research has progressed in this field. However, there is a scarcity of literature specifically focused on the bibliometric analysis of this topic. This study sought to investigate the development pattern of TIME-related research from 2006 to September 14, 2022, from a bibliometric perspective. METHODS: We acquired both articles and reviews related to TIME from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) (retrieved on September 14, 2022). R package "Bibliometrix" was used to calculate the basic bibliometric features, present the collaborative conditions of countries and authors, and generate a three-field plot to show the relationships among authors, affiliations, and keywords. VOSviewer was utilized for co-authorship analysis of country and institution and keyword co-occurrence analysis. CiteSpace was used for citation burst analysis of keywords and cited references. In addition, Microsoft Office Excel 2019 was used to develop an exponential model to fit the cumulative publication numbers. RESULTS: A total of 2545 publications on TIME were included, and the annual publication trend exhibited a significant increase over time. China and Fudan University were the most productive country and institution, with the highest number of publications of 1495 and 396, respectively. Frontiers in Oncology held the highest number of publications. A number of authors were recognized as the main contributors in this field. The clustering analysis revealed six clusters of keywords that highlighted the research hot spots in the fields of basic medical research, immunotherapy, and various cancer types separately. CONCLUSIONS: This research analyzed 16 years of TIME-related research and sketched out a basic knowledge framework that includes publications, countries, journals, authors, institutions, and keywords. The finding revealed that the current research hot spots of the TIME domain lie in "TIME and cancer prognosis", "cancer immunotherapy", and "immune checkpoint". Our researchers identified the following areas: "immune checkpoint-based immunotherapy", "precise immunotherapy" and "immunocyte pattern", which may emerge as frontiers and focal points in the upcoming years, offering valuable avenues for further exploration.

Evolutionary patterns and research frontiers in neoadjuvant immunotherapy: a bibliometric analysis.

Research has shown that neoadjuvant immunotherapy may provide more significant clinical benefits to cancer patients undergoing surgery than adjuvant therapy. This study examines the development of neoadjuvant immunotherapy research using bibliometric analysis. As of 12 February 2023, articles on neoadjuvant immunotherapy in the Web of Science Core Collection were collected. Co-authorship and keyword co-occurrence analyses and visualizations were performed using VOSviewer, while CiteSpace was used to identify bursting keywords and references. The study analyzed a total of 1222 neoadjuvant immunotherapy publications. The top contributors to this field were the United States, China, and Italy, and the journal with the most publications was Frontiers in Oncology. Francesco Montorsi had the highest H-index. The most common keywords were 'immunotherapy' and 'neoadjuvant therapy'. The study conducted a bibliometric analysis of over 20 years of neoadjuvant immunotherapy research, identifying the countries, institutions, authors, journals, and publications involved in this field. The findings provide a comprehensive overview of neoadjuvant immunotherapy research.

Research on liquid biopsy for cancer: A bibliometric analysis.

BACKGROUND: In recent years, liquid biopsy has shown great potential for improving cancer diagnosis and treatment. This study aimed to explore the trends and prospects in liquid biopsy for cancer from a bibliometric perspective. METHODS: Reviews and articles on liquid biopsy and cancer were collected from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC). Key bibliometric characteristics were analyzed using CiteSpace. Co-occurrence analysis of keywords and co-citation analysis of references was performed. RESULTS: A total of 6331 publications from 11 years of scientific research were retrieved. Ninety-five countries and 7004 institutions in liquid biopsy and cancer contributed. The United States (US) and China published the most articles. The institution with the most published articles was the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. The most published journals were Cancer and Frontiers in Oncology. "Bettegowda (2014)" was the most cited reference with the highest burst strength in the last decade. Cluster analysis revealed that the recent hot topics were "circulating tumor cells," "cancer," and "exosomes." CONCLUSIONS: This bibliometric analysis maps the basic knowledge structure of the field of liquid biopsy for cancer. The field is entering a phase of rapid development. The hot spots identified in this study deserve further investigation.

Primary gastrinoma of the gallbladder: a case report and review of the literature.

Background: Primary gallbladder gastrinoma is an exceptionally uncommon tumor and is a rare form of neuroendocrine neoplasm. Until now, no cases of primary gallbladder gastrinoma and rare cases of primary gastrinoma from the biliary system have been reported. Case presentation: We report a case of a 50-year-old woman with watery diarrhea who intermittently received proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) as treatment. A serum gastrin level of 711 pg/ml was recorded after the withdrawal of PPI over 1 week. Enhanced computed tomography (CT) imaging and octreotide imaging uncovered a solitary tumor at the hepatic hilar region. During the laparoscopic surgery, it was determined that the tumor had its origin in the wall of the gallbladder neck, prompting the implementation of a laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Histological analysis revealed a primary neuroendocrine tumor from the neck of the gallbladder. The patient's symptoms disappeared after the surgery with a follow-up of 6 months. Conclusions: This case confirmed that primary gallbladder gastrinoma represents a distinct nosological entity. Immunohistochemical analysis plays a pivotal role in the diagnostic process. Given the limited understanding of primary gallbladder gastrinoma, our objective is to offer novel insights into this rare disease by delivering distinctive information and highlighting the therapeutic significance of surgical intervention.

A novel cuproptosis-related gene signature for overall survival prediction in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma.

Prognosis prediction is difficult in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) due to high heterogeneity and complex etiology. It has recently been discovered that cuproptosis is a type of programmed cell death. However, its significance for HCC is still unclear. We analyzed mRNA expression profiles and clinical information from public databases to determine whether cuproptosis-related genes are associated with improved prognoses for HCC patients. The training cohort consisted of HCC patients from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), and the validation cohort relied on the International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC) database. We constructed a signature containing four genes using the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) COX regression model for calculating risk scores. Two risk groups were formed based on the median score. A significant improvement in survival was observed in the low-risk group compared to the high-risk. The multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that the risk score was an independent predictor of overall survival (OS). Further confirmation of the predictive accuracy of this signature is provided by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. Functional analysis revealed differences in immune status between the two risk groups. All the results described above were confirmed in the validation cohort. Therefore, a novel cuproptosis-related signature has the potential as a prognostic biomarker for HCC patients. Drugs developed to target cuproptosis-related genes may open up new pathways for treating HCC.

Systems biology approach reveals a common molecular basis for COVID-19 and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

BACKGROUND: Patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) may be more susceptible to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and even more likely to suffer from severe COVID-19. Whether there is a common molecular pathological basis for COVID-19 and NAFLD remains to be identified. The present study aimed to elucidate the transcriptional alterations shared by COVID-19 and NAFLD and to identify potential compounds targeting both diseases. METHODS: Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) for COVID-19 and NAFLD were extracted from the GSE147507 and GSE89632 datasets, and common DEGs were identified using the Venn diagram. Subsequently, we constructed a protein-protein interaction (PPI) network based on the common DEGs and extracted hub genes. Then, we performed gene ontology (GO) and pathway analysis of common DEGs. In addition, transcription factors (TFs) and miRNAs regulatory networks were constructed, and drug candidates were identified. RESULTS: We identified a total of 62 common DEGs for COVID-19 and NAFLD. The 10 hub genes extracted based on the PPI network were IL6, IL1B, PTGS2, JUN, FOS, ATF3, SOCS3, CSF3, NFKB2, and HBEGF. In addition, we also constructed TFs-DEGs, miRNAs-DEGs, and protein-drug interaction networks, demonstrating the complex regulatory relationships of common DEGs. CONCLUSION: We successfully extracted 10 hub genes that could be used as novel therapeutic targets for COVID-19 and NAFLD. In addition, based on common DEGs, we propose some potential drugs that may benefit patients with COVID-19 and NAFLD.

Immune-related adverse events: A bibliometric analysis.

Background: Despite providing clinical benefit, immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) can cause immune-related adverse events (irAEs) in a number of patients. This study explored the development pattern in irAEs research from a bibliometric perspective. Methods: We obtained articles and reviews related to irAEs from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) (retrieved on September 13, 2022). Using the R package "Bibliometrix", the main bibliometric features were calculated, and a three-filed plot was generated to show the relationship between authors, institutions, and topics. VOSviewer was used for co-authorship and keyword co-occurrence analysis and visualization. CiteSpace was used to detect burst references and keywords. Results: A total of 3995 publications on irAEs were included. The United States (US), Japan, and China had the highest publications. The Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer had the highest number of publications. In addition to "immune-related adverse events", "immune checkpoint inhibitors", "immunotherapy", and "nivolumab" were the most frequently used keywords. Conclusions: A bibliometric analysis of 17 years of irAEs research was conducted to map a basic knowledge structure including countries, institutions, authors, journals, and publications. The findings provided a comprehensive perspective on the broad future of this research area.

Ghrelin protects against nucleus pulposus degeneration through inhibition of NF-κB signaling pathway and activation of Akt signaling pathway.

The objective of the present study was to examine the potential role of ghrelin in degeneration of nucleus pulposus (NP). Lower expression levels of ghrelin were found in human NP cells stimulated with interleukin-1ß (IL-1ß). Moreover, exogenous ghrelin suppressed IL-1ß induced degeneration and inflammation associated biomarkers in human NP cells, including matrix metalloproteinase-13, a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin motifs-5, tumor necrosis factor-α and iNOS, which was possibly mediated by antagonization of NF-κB signaling. Moreover, ghrelin enhanced production of critical extracellular matrix of NP cells, including collagen 2, aggrecan, and Sox-9 in NP cells. Ghrelin also promoted NP tissue regeneration in a rabbit IVD degeneration model, which seems to be associated with growth hormone secretagogue receptor. Additionally, the protective role of ghrelin in anabolism potentially relies on activation of Akt signaling pathway. Taken together, ghrelin may represent a molecular target for prevention and treatment of intervertebral disc degeneration.

Mangiferin antagonizes TNF-α-mediated inflammatory reaction and protects against dermatitis in a mice model.

This study aimed to investigate whether mangiferin played a protective role in a well-established dermatitis mouse model and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α)-induced RAW264.7 macrophages. Contact dermatitis is an inflammatory skin disease in the clinic, while its underlying mechanism still remains to be elucidated. Mangiferin, 1,3,6,7-tetrahydroxyxanthone-C2-ß-d-glucoside (C-glucosyl xanthone), a natural antioxidant that was reported to inhibit inflammatory reactions, has been recently proved to be a potential therapy for inflammation. As a result, the oxazolone-induced dermatitis mice models were established to explore whether mangiferin has an anti-inflammatory role in vivo. The phosphate-buffered saline treatment groups showed emblematic skin inflammation, whereas the administration of mangiferin obviously inhibited dermatitis in the mice models. Furthermore, exogenous mangiferin alleviated the inflammatory reaction in TNF-α-induced macrophages by suppressing the production of inflammation- and oxidative stress-associated molecules. Also, mangiferin treatment repressed the activation of nuclear factor-kappaB signaling pathway. To sum up, mangiferin could provide a new target for the therapy and prevention of skin inflammation.

Chronic Calcium Channel Inhibitor Verapamil Antagonizes TNF-α-Mediated Inflammatory Reaction and Protects Against Inflammatory Arthritis in Mice.

It is well established that the tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) plays a dominant role in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Calcium channel is recently reported to be closely associated with various inflammatory diseases. However, whether chronic calcium channel blocker verapamil plays a role in RA still remains unknown. To investigate the role of verapamil in antagonizing TNF-α-mediated inflammation reaction and the underlying mechanisms, bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMDM) cells were cultured with stimulation of TNF-α, in the presence or absence of verapamil. Inflammation-associated cytokines, including IL-1, IL-6, inducible nitric oxide synthase 2 (NOS-2), and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), were assessed, and verapamil suppressed TNF-α-induced expression of inflammatory cytokines. Furthermore, collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) mice models were established, and arthritis progression was evaluated by clinical and histological signs of arthritis. Treatment of verapamil attenuated inflammation as well as joint destruction in arthritis models. In addition, activity of NF-kB signaling pathway was determined both in vitro and in mice arthritis models, and verapamil inhibited TNF-α-induced activation of NF-kB signaling both in vitro and in mice models. Collectively, chronic calcium channel blocker verapamil may shed light on treatment of inflammatory arthritis and provide a potential therapeutic instrument for RA in the future.