A Bibliometric Analysis of the Literature on Irisin from 2012–2021

Irisin is a hormone-like molecule mainly released by skeletal muscles in response to exercise, which is proposed to induce the ‘browning’ of white adipose tissue. Since its identification, irisin was reported to be closely associated with many metabolic diseases, including type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), obesity, cardiovascular disease (CVD), and metabolic bone diseases. In recent years, irisin has attracted increasing research interest, and numerous studies have been published in this field. Thus, it is essential to identify the current research status of irisin and measure research hotspots and possible future trends. In this study, by utilizing two visualization software named CiteSpace and VOSviewer, we analyzed 1510 Web of Science publications on irisin published from 2012 to 2021. Our results show that the number of irisin-related articles published annually has increased significantly. China participates in the most studies, followed by the United States and Turkey. Firat University, Harvard University, and Shandong University are three major institutions with larger numbers of publications. The analysis of keywords co-occurrence indicates that insulin resistance, inflammation, and circulating irisin levels in serum are the research hotspots. Apoptosis, BDNF, and osteoporosis will likely become the focus of future research related to irisin. Overall, this study may provide helpful insights for researchers to understand the current research situation and identify the potential frontiers of irisin.