Search

The use of medicinal plants has been done since ancient times and may even be considered the origin of modern medicine. Compounds of plant origin have been and still are an important source of compounds for drugs. In this study a bibliometric study of all the works indexed in the Scopus database until 2019 has been carried out, analyzing more than 100,000 publications. On the one hand, the main countries, institutions and authors researching this topic have been identified, as well as their evolution over time. On the other hand, the links between the authors, the countries and the topics under research have been analyzed through the detection of communities. The last two periods, from 2009 to 2014 and from 2015 to 2019, have been examined in terms of research topics. It has been observed that the areas of study or clusters have been reduced, those of the last period being those engaged in unclassified drug, traditional medicine, cancer, in vivo study&mdash, antidiabetic activity, and animals&mdash, anti-inflammatory activity. In summary, it has been observed that the trend in global research is focused more on the search for new medicines or active compounds rather than on the cultivation or domestication of plant species with this demonstrated potential.

Investments in research and development (R&amp, D) and innovation are expensive, and one wishes to be assured that there is positive feedback and to receive guidance on how to direct investments in the future. The social or economic benefits of investments in R&amp, D are of particular interest to policymakers. In this regard, public expense in research, especially through universities, is sometimes being questioned. This paper establishes a measure of how research in Spain, and specifically in its universities, is involved. In this study, we have analyzed all the literature cited in the period 1998&ndash, 2018 produced by Spanish institutions and which has been cited in at least one international patent, obtaining more than 40,000 publications from more than 160,000 different authors. The data have been surprisingly positive, showing that practically all public universities contribute to this subject and that there is a great deal of international collaboration, both in terms of the number of countries with which they collaborate and the prestige of the institutions involved. Regarding the specific scientific fields in which this collaboration is most relevant, biochemistry, genetics and molecular biology, and medicine together account for almost 40% of the total works. The topics most used by these publications were those of diseases or medical problems such as: Neoplams, Carcinoma, Alzheimer Disease, or human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1). Oncology was according to the All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) the leading and central issue. Therefore, although the result of basic research is difficult to quantify, when it is observed that there is a return in fields such as medicine or global health, it can be said that it is well employed. In terms of journals from a purely bibliometric point of view, it has been observed that some journals do not have a great impact or relative position within their categories, but they do have a great relevance in this area of patent support. Therefore, it would be worthwhile to set up a rank for scientific journals based on the citations of patents, so the percentage of articles cited in patents with Field-Weighted Citation Impact (FWCI) &gt, 1, and as an indicator of scientific transfer from universities or research centres, the transference index in patents (TIP) is also proposed.

It is essential to establish a pattern to detect the strengths and weaknesses of working groups publishing on malaria, to promote coordination to facilitate the eradication of the disease. Given the complexity of the scientific network of groups and institutions studying malaria, it is necessary to use a mathematical algorithm that allows us to know the real structure of research on the disease in the world. In this work, articles with the word &ldquo, malaria&rdquo, in the title or author keywords gathered from Elsevier Scopus database were analyzed. By means of specific software, graphs were created. The analysis of the data allowed established different scientific communities, among which two were very diverse: one formed by those groups concerned about the vector transmission and control, and another one focused on the drug resistance of the parasite. Basic, applied, and operational research to eradicate malaria is an ambitious goal of the international institutions and the scientific community. The combination of effort and the establishment of a worldwide-scientific network that allows an effective interconnection (exchange) of knowledge, infrastructure technology, collaborators, financial resources, and datasets will contribute more effectively to end the disease.

Background: Malaria is one of the infectious diseases of greatest interest to the scientific community and of greatest concern to international health authorities. Traditionally, the focus has been on Plasmodium falciparum, the parasite that causes the most severe form of the disease in Africa. However, in the last twenty years, the Plasmodium vivax parasite, responsible for a large number of cases in Latin America, the Middle East, South and Southeast Asia, the Horn of Africa, and Oceania, has also generated enormous interest due, among other things, to the published evidence that it can cause severe malaria. Methods: In this paper, the international scientific publication on malaria and P. vivax has been analyzed using the Scopus database to try to define global trends in this field of study. Results: It has been shown that events such as the emergence of resistance to certain drugs can break a trend. The important role of non-malaria-endemic countries such as the USA or Switzerland in malaria research is also evident. Conclusions: International cooperation will be essential for the eradication of the disease. Moreover, in this sense, the general vision given by the bibliometric analysis of malaria caused by P. vivax is fundamental to paint the picture regarding the current situation and encourage international cooperation and control efforts.