The scientific landscape of phytoremediation of tailings: a bibliometric and scientometric analysis.

This article seeks to evaluate the scientific landscape of the phytoremediation of mine tailings through a series of bibliometric and scientometric techniques. Phytoremediation has emerged as a sustainable approach to remediate metal-contaminated mine waste areas. A scientometric analysis of 913 publications indexed in Web of Science from 1999 to 2023 was conducted using CiteSpace. The results reveal an expanding, interdisciplinary field with environmental sciences as the core category. Keyword analysis of 561 nodes and 2,825 links shows a focus on plant-metal interactions, microbial partnerships, bioavailability, and field validation. Co-citation analysis of 1,032 nodes and 2,944 links identifies seminal works on native species, plant-microbe interactions, and amendments. Temporal mapping of 15 co-citation clusters indicates a progression from early risk assessments and native plant inquiries to integrated biological systems, economic feasibility, and sustainability considerations. Recent trends emphasize multidimensional factors influencing adoption, such as plant-soil-microbe interactions, organic amendments, and field-scale performance evaluation. The findings demonstrate an intensifying translation of phytoremediation from scientific novelty to engineering practice. This quantitative and qualitative analysis of research trends aids in understanding the development of phytoremediation for mine tailings. The results provide valuable insights for researchers and practitioners in this evolving field.

Bibliometric Analysis of Cannabis sativa Research: Trends, Challenges, and Future Directions.

Introduction: The use of medical Cannabis remains unregulated in several countries due to the scarcity of clinical studies with high scientific evidence that establish safety and efficacy of Cannabis products. This study aimed to comprehensively analyze how knowledge has been created in this field, as well as perform a bibliographic mapping to identify knowledge gaps, and investigate key authors and journals that have significantly contributed to advancing our understanding of Cannabis. Method: The study protocol was registered in the International Prospective Register of Systematic Review (CRD42020223084). A systematic search was conducted in the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Lilacs, Google Scholar, PubMed, SciELO, Scopus, and Web of Science databases. The bibliographic analysis and mapping were registered using the VOSviewer, Sci2tool, CiteSpace, and PoP software. Results: The systematic search identified 27,597 records, with 17,020 duplicates, resulting in a total of 10,577 articles included. The authors who published the most were Marilyn Ann Huestis (n=108) and Sagnik Bhattacharyya (n=71), while Elisaldo A. Carlini and Raphael Mechoulam published 8 and 22 articles, respectively. The journals Drug and Alcohol Dependence (n=297), Psychopharmacology (n=159) and Addictive Behaviors (n=150) were the ones that published the most on Cannabis. The journals suggest that the articles are correlated with the adverse and toxicological effects of recreational Cannabis use; however, most articles focus on medical Cannabis. The peak of publications was in 2021 (n=1,481). The countries that published the most were the United States (n=9,735), while Brazil occupied the 11th position (n=422). Most publications were carried out in "Pharmacology and Pharmacy" (11.31%), followed by "Psychiatry" (7.66%) and "Medicine" (5.80%). The areas of "Neurosciences" (1.59%), "Biochemistry," "Genetics," and "Molecular Biology" (0.79%) were little explored. Conclusion: This study captured the characteristics of publications about Cannabis and clinical studies in the scientific literature, yielding >10,000 articles, representing a large literature review, to date. Therefore, the most productive countries included the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada, while the most productive authors were Marilyn Ann Huestis and Sagnik Bhattacharyya, with a peak of publications in 2021. Finally, the most chosen journals were Drug and Alcohol Dependence and Psychopharmacology.

Waste and by-products as sources of lycopene, phytoene, and phytofluene - Integrative review with bibliometric analysis.

Food loss and waste are severe social, economic, and environmental issues. An example is the incorrect handling of waste or by-products used to obtain bioactive compounds, such as carotenoids. This review aimed to present a comprehensive overview of research on lycopene, phytoene, and phytofluene obtained from waste and by-products. In this study, an integrative literature approach was coupled with bibliometric analysis to provide a broad perspective of the topic. PRISMA guidelines were used to search studies in the Web of Science database systematically. Articles were included if (1) employed waste or by-products to obtain lycopene, phytoene, and phytofluene or (2) performed applications of the carotenoids previously extracted from waste sources. Two hundred and four articles were included in the study, and the prevalent theme was research on the recovery of lycopene from tomato processing. However, the scarcity of studies on colorless carotenoids (phytoene and phytofluene) was evidenced, although these are generally associated with lycopene. Different technologies were used to extract lycopene from plant matrices, with a clear current trend toward choosing environmentally friendly alternatives. Microbial production of carotenoids from various wastes is a highly competitive alternative to conventional processes. The results described here can guide future forays into the subject, especially regarding research on phytoene and phytofluene, potential and untapped sources of carotenoids from waste and by-products, and in choosing more efficient, safe, and environmentally sustainable extraction protocols.

Innovative Membrane Technologies for the Treatment of Wastewater Polluted with Heavy Metals: Perspective of the Potential of Electrodialysis, Membrane Distillation, and Forward Osmosis from a Bibliometric Analysis.

A bibliometric analysis, using the Scopus database as a source, was carried out in order to study the scientific documents published up to 2021 regarding the use of electrodialysis, membrane distillation, and forward osmosis for the removal of heavy metals from wastewater. A total of 362 documents that fulfilled the search criteria were found, and the results from the corresponding analysis revealed that the number of documents greatly increased after the year 2010, although the first document was published in 1956. The exponential evolution of the scientific production related to these innovative membrane technologies confirmed an increasing interest from the scientific community. The most prolific country was Denmark, which contributed 19.3% of the published documents, followed by the two main current scientific superpowers: China and the USA (with 17.4% and 7.5% contributions, respectively). Environmental Science was the most common subject (55.0% of contributions), followed by Chemical Engineering (37.3% of contributions) and Chemistry (36.5% of contribution). The prevalence of electrodialysis over the other two technologies was clear in terms of relative frequency of the keywords. An analysis of the main hot topics identified the main advantages and drawbacks of each technology, and revealed that examples of their successful implementation beyond the lab scale are still scarce. Therefore, complete techno-economic evaluation of the treatment of wastewater polluted with heavy metals via these innovative membrane technologies must be encouraged.

A Bibliometric Analysis of Research on Selenium in Drinking Water during the 1990-2021 Period: Treatment Options for Selenium Removal.

A bibliometric analysis based on the Scopus database was carried out to summarize the global research related to selenium in drinking water from 1990 to 2021 and identify the quantitative characteristics of the research in this period. The results from the analysis revealed that the number of accumulated publications followed a quadratic growth, which confirmed the relevance this research topic is gaining during the last years. High research efforts have been invested to define safe selenium content in drinking water, since the insufficient or excessive intake of selenium and the corresponding effects on human health are only separated by a narrow margin. Some important research features of the four main technologies most frequently used to remove selenium from drinking water (coagulation, flocculation and precipitation followed by filtration; adsorption and ion exchange; membrane-based processes and biological treatments) were compiled in this work. Although the search of technological options to remove selenium from drinking water is less intensive than the search of solutions to reduce and eliminate the presence of other pollutants, adsorption was the alternative that has received the most attention according to the research trends during the studied period, followed by membrane technologies, while biological methods require further research efforts to promote their implementation.

Research in education and communication in science: contributions from the Biota-Fapesp program to biodiversity education / Pesquisa em educação e comunicação em ciências: contribuições do programa Biota-Fapesp para a educação em biodiversidade

Abstract In this article, we aim to understand the contributions of the Biota-Fapesp Program to the research in biodiversity education and communication. Our research questions are: (i) is the Biota-Fapesp Program following or contributing to the significant advances in conceptual, technological/methodological, and management/governance aspects of biodiversity education/communication research?; (ii) if yes, how do the projects contribute to these advances?; and (iii) what are the main expectations for the future of Biota in education and communication research? Our analyzes highlighted a qualitative contribution from the Biota-Fapesp Program at institutional, methodological, conceptual, and educational levels. However, due to the few projects, it can be considered a summative contribution and not a transformative one. Perspectives for the Biota-Fapesp Program in these areas were divided into three approaches: 1. Research lines and concepts that could be encouraged through specific calls or inclusion in other calls of interest to the Program; 2. Innovative methodological approaches for the area that should be encouraged; 3. Suggestions for scientific research management and infrastructure. Through data and discussions presented below, we hope to contribute to the understanding of the role of Biota-Fapesp in the area, and point out ways to develop research, practices and public policies that promote the strengthening of science as culture.

Resumo Neste artigo, buscamos compreender as contribuições do Programa Biota-Fapesp para a pesquisa em educação e comunicação em biodiversidade. Nossas questões de pesquisa são: (i) o Programa Biota-Fapesp está acompanhando e/ou contribuindo para os principais avanços nos aspectos conceituais, tecnológicos/metodológicos e/ou de gestão/governança da pesquisa em educação/comunicação em biodiversidade?; (ii) se sim, como os projetos contribuem para esses avanços?; e (iii) quais são as principais expectativas para o futuro do Biota na pesquisa em educação e comunicação? Nossas análises destacaram uma contribuição qualitativa do Programa Biota-Fapesp nos níveis institucional, metodológico, conceitual e educacional. No entanto, devido ao baixo número de projetos, esta contribuição pode ser considerada somativa, mas não transformadora. As perspectivas do Programa Biota-Fapesp para essas áreas foram divididas em três abordagens: 1. Linhas de pesquisa e conceitos que podem ser incentivados por meio de editais específicos ou inclusão em outros editais de interesse do Programa; 2. Abordagens metodológicas inovadoras para a área que devem ser incentivadas; 3. Sugestões para gestão e infraestrutura da pesquisa científica. Por meio dos dados e discussões apresentados a seguir, esperamos contribuir para a compreensão do papel do Biota-Fapesp na área, bem como apontar caminhos para desenvolver pesquisas, práticas e políticas públicas que promovam o fortalecimento da ciência como cultura.

Bibliometrics of Latin American research on COVID-19 in the first year of the pandemic: the main trends / Bibliometría de la investigación latinoamericana sobre COVID-19 en el primer año de la pandemia: principales tendencias

Abstract Introduction: An outbreak of the COVID-19 was appended in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in December 2019. Lots of related papers were published in the world since then. Objective: This study aimed to identify and analyze the characteristics of COVID-19 publications in the Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED) published by Latin Americans in 2020. Methods: Documents including searching keywords in their title, abstract, or author keywords from SCI-EXPANDED were assessed. The analyzed aspects covered characteristics of document types, languages, Web of Science categories, and journals. Publication performances of countries and institutions were evaluated by six publication indicators and two citation indicators. Results: A lower percentage of articles and a higher percentage of Spanish language were found. Web of Science category of general and internal medicine published the most articles. The Clinics was the most popular journal. The Cadernos de Saude Publica and Revista da Associacao Medica Brasileira published the most publications and reviews, respectively. Brazil took a leading position in the six publication indicators. The University of São Paulo in Brazil was the most productive institution. Based on the number of citations from the Web of Science Core Collection since publication to the end of 2020, 10 most frequently cited publications were presented. In addition, the analysis of words in publication titles, author keywords, and KeyWords Plus was performed to find the main research focuses. Conclusions: In 2020, a total of 3 056 COVID-19 documents in SCI-EXPANDED were published by Latin Americans mainly in the Web of Science categories of 'general and internal medicine' and 'public, environmental and occupational health'. More letters and editorial materials and fewer articles were published in the first year of its outbreak. A higher percentage of Spanish and Portuguese publications was found. Brazil dominated the six publication indicators. The University of São Paulo in Brazil ranked top in all the six publication indicators while the Technological University of Pereira in Colombia had a higher impact for their first- and corresponding-author publications. Health and infection were the main research focuses.

Resumen Introducción: En diciembre de 2019 se produjo un brote de COVID-19 en la ciudad china de Wuhan. Desde entonces se publicaron muchos artículos relacionados en el mundo. Objetivo: Este estudio tuvo como objetivo identificar y analizar las características de las publicaciones de COVID-19 en el Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED) realizadas por latinoamericanos en 2020. Métodos: Se evaluaron los documentos que incluían palabras clave de búsqueda en su título, resumen o palabras clave de autor del SCI-EXPANDED. Los aspectos analizados cubrieron las características de los tipos de documentos, los idiomas, las categorías de la Web of Science y las revistas. El rendimiento de las publicaciones de los países e instituciones se evaluó mediante seis indicadores de publicación y dos indicadores de citación. Resultados: Se encontró un bajo porcentaje de artículos y un mayor porcentaje en la lengua española. La categoría Web of Science de medicina general e interna fue la que más artículos publicó. The Clinics fue la revista más popular. Los Cadernos de Saude Publica y la Revista da Associacao Medica Brasileira fueron las que más publicaciones y revisiones publicaron, respectivamente. Brasil ocupó una posición destacada en los seis indicadores de publicación. La Universidad de São Paulo en Brasil fue la institución más productiva. Basándose en el número de citas de la Web of Science Core Collection desde la publicación hasta el final de 2020, se presentaron las 10 publicaciones más citadas. Además, se realizó el análisis de las palabras en los títulos de las publicaciones, las palabras clave del autor y KeyWords Plus para encontrar los principales focos de investigación. Conclusiones: En 2020, un total de 3 056 documentos COVID-19 en SCI-EXPANDED fueron publicados por latinoamericanos, principalmente en las categorías de la Web of Science de 'medicina general e interna' y 'salud pública, ambiental y ocupacional'. Se publicaron más cartas y materiales editoriales y menos artículos en el primer año de su aparición. Se encontró un mayor porcentaje de publicaciones en español y portugués. Brasil dominó los seis indicadores de publicación. La Universidad de São Paulo, en Brasil, ocupó el primer puesto en los seis indicadores de publicación, mientras que la Universidad Tecnológica de Pereira, en Colombia, tuvo un mayor impacto en sus publicaciones de primer y segundo autor. La salud y la infección fueron los principales focos de investigación.

Tendencias y principios en las corrientes bioéticas

Propósito/Contexto. Este artículo es producto de una investigación que buscó establecer cuáles son los principios bioéticos más tratados, estudiados y discutidos en las corrientes médica, clínica, laica, cardinal, principialista, personalista, realista, europea y latinoamericana, buscando determinar las principales tendencias en el periodo comprendido entre 1970 y 2018. Metodología/Enfoque. Se construyó una matriz como instrumento de registro y categorización para un estudio cualitativo, con enfoque descriptivo y de tipo documental, y de método deductivo lógico. Así se efectuó una selección y descripción de las corrientes bioéticas a las cuales pertenecen cada uno de los principios abordados. A partir de esto se hizo un seguimiento descriptivo del estatus de los principios, para encontrar vacíos de conocimiento y para generar condiciones óptimas que susciten debates de orientación interdisciplinar y transdisciplinar. Resultados/Hallazgos. La conjunción de los hallazgos permitió identificar catorce principios bioéticos en las corrientes y tendencias predominantes, reconociendo a su vez el origen y la definición de los mismos, y estableciendo relaciones entre autores de diferentes nacionalidades y distintas corrientes bioéticas. Discusiones/Conclusiones/Contribuciones. Se detectaron catorce principios bioéticos predominantes en un periodo cuarenta y ocho años: autonomía, beneficencia, no maleficencia, justicia, información, dignidad, integridad, vulnerabilidad, respeto por la vida, individualidad, universalidad, conservación, realización, propiedad. Cada uno de estos principios se asoció a un instrumento internacional y a una corriente bioética, observando un pluriprincipialismo y una orientación hacia las tendencias de bioeticistas europeos y estadounidenses.

Purpose/Context. This article seeks to determine the most covered, studied, and discussed bioethical principles in the medical, clinical, secular, cardinal, principlist, personalist, realist, European, and Latin American currents and identify the main trends between 1970 and 2018. Methodology/Approach. We built a matrix as a recording and categorization instrument for a qualitative study with a descriptive and documentary approach and a deductive method. Thus, we selected and outlined the bioethical currents of the principles addressed with a descriptive follow-up of their status to find knowledge gaps and create optimal conditions for inter- and transdisciplinary debates. Results/Findings. The conjunction of findings allowed identifying fourteen bioethical principles in the predominant currents and tendencies, recognizing their origin and definition, and establishing relationships between authors of different nationalities and bioethical currents. Discussions/Conclusions/Contributions. We detected fourteen prevailing bioethical principles in forty-eight years: autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence, justice, information, dignity, integrity, vulnerability, respect for life, individuality, universality, conservation, realization, property. Each principle was associated with an international instrument and a bioethical current, noting pluriprinciplism and orientation towards European and American bioethicists' trends.

Objetivo/contexto. Este artigo procura estabelecer quais são os princípios bioéticos mais tratados, estudados e discutidos nas correntes médica, clínica, leiga, cardinal, principialista, personalista, realista, europeia e latino-americana, além de identificar as principais tendências no período compreendido entre 1970 e 2018. Metodologia/Abordagem. Construiu-se uma matriz como instrumento de registro e categorização para um estudo qualitativo, com abordagem descritivo e de tipo documental, e de método dedutivo lógico. Assim se efetuou uma seleção e descrição das correntes bioéticas às quais pertencem cada um dos princípios abordados. A partir disso, fez-se um seguimento descritivo do status dos princípios, para encontrar lacunas de conhecimento e para gerar condições ótimas que suscitem debates de orientação interdisciplinar e transdisciplinar. Resultados/Descobertas. A conjunção das descobertas permitiu identificar catorze princípios bioéticos nas correntes e tendências predominantes, reconhecendo por sua vez a origem e a definição dos mesmos, estabelecendo relações entre autores de diferentes nacionalidades e diferentes correntes bioéticas. Discussões/Conclusões/Contribuições. Foram detectados catorze princípios bioéticos predominantes num período de quarenta e oito anos: autonomia, beneficência, não maleficência, justiça, informação, dignidade, integridade, vulnerabilidade, respeito pela vida, individualidade, universalidade, conservação, realização, propriedade. Cada um destes princípios se associou a um instrumento internacional e a uma corrente bioética, observando um pluriprincipialismo e uma orientação para as tendências de bioeticistas europeus e dos EUA.

Four challenges when conducting bibliometric reviews and how to deal with them.

The evidence base in environmental sciences is increasing steadily. Environmental researchers have been challenged to handle massive volumes of data to support more comprehensive studies, assess the current status of science, and move research towards future progress. Bibliometrics can provide important insights into the research directions by providing summarized information for several end users. Here, we present an in-depth discussion on the use of bibliometric indicators to evaluate research outputs through four case studies comprising disciplines in environmental sciences. We discuss four big challenges researchers may face when conducting bibliometric reviews and how to deal with them. We also address some primary questions researchers may answer with bibliometric mapping, drawing lessons from the case studies. Lastly, we clarify some misuses of review concepts and suggest methodological principles of systematic reviews and maps to improve the overall quality of bibliometric studies.

Self-Healing Asphalt: A Systematic Bibliometric Analysis for Identification of Hot Research Topics during the 2003-2018 Period.

The use of self-healing asphalt is a good option to extend the lifetime of roads and to improve the sustainability of pavement management systems. A bibliometric analysis based on the Scopus database was carried out to review the global research related to self-healing asphalt from 2003 to 2018 and to identify relevant quantitative characteristics from the research in this period. The results from this analysis revealed that the number of accumulated publications followed an exponential growth, which confirmed the relevance that this research topic has gained during the last years. The study revealed that China was the most productive country, followed by the Netherlands, where the most prolific institution is located: Delft University of Technology. Some important research features of the two main approaches most frequently used to develop asphalt mixtures with enhanced self-healing abilities (external heating and encapsulated rejuvenating agents) are compiled in this work.

Systematic review and meta-analysis of 50 years of coral disease research visualized through the scope of network theory.

Coral disease research encompasses five decades of undeniable progress. Since the first descriptions of anomalous signs, we have come to understand multiple processes and environmental drivers that interact with coral pathologies. In order to gain a better insight into the knowledge we already have, we explored how key topics in coral disease research have been related to each other using network analysis. We reviewed 719 papers and conference proceedings published from 1965 to 2017. From each study, four elements determined our network nodes: (1) studied disease(s); (2) host genus; (3) marine ecoregion(s) associated with the study site; and (4) research objectives. Basic properties of this network confirmed that there is a set of specific topics comprising the majority of research. The top five diseases, genera, and ecoregions studied accounted for over 48% of the research effort in all cases. The community structure analysis identified 15 clusters of topics with different degrees of overlap among them. These clusters represent the typical sets of elements that appear together for a given study. Our results show that while some coral diseases have been studied considering multiple aspects, the overall trend is for most diseases to be understood under a limited range of approaches, e.g., bacterial assemblages have been considerably studied in Yellow and Black band diseases while immune response has been better examined for the aspergillosis-Gorgonia system. Thus, our challenge in the near future is to identify and resolve potential gaps in order to achieve a more comprehensive progress on coral disease research.

Bibliometric analysis of Ghana publications in the Science Citation Index Expanded / Análisis bibliométrico de las publicaciones de Ghana en el Índice de Citación de Ciencia

Abstract Ghana is a West African country for which apparently there are limited scientometric studies. The objective of this study was to analyze the Ghanaian contribution to knowledge captured in the Thomson Reuters Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED) database from 1936 - 2016. The following data were analyzed: document type, the language of publication, publication trend, Web of Science Subject Categories, Journals, international collaboration, institutions, authors, and highly cited articles. Indicators such as the total number of articles, first author articles, and corresponding author articles were applied to compare publication performance for collaborative countries and institutions. Also, number of single institute articles: number of nationally collaborative articles: number of internationally collaborative articles (S : N : I) were also used to compare publication characteristics of institutions in Ghana. Results showed that publication trend increased from 1998 to 2015, with researches focusing on health and medicine. PLoS One was the top productive journal, and the most collaborative country for Ghana articles was the USA. Contributions from the University of Ghana were ranked the top one institution for Ghana articles, and higher citation papers were found in international collaborations. In conclusion, the contribution to knowledge of Ghanaian authors is massive in the areas of public, environmental and occupational health and tropical medicine but the impact factor is higher for immunology, infectious diseases, and microbiology articles. Therefore, Ghanaian authors are encouraged to publish more articles in high impact factor journals with Thomson Reuters Scientific indexing in order to have their researches recognized by the existing international databases. Rev. Biol. Trop. 66(1): 106-121. Epub 2018 March 01.

Resumen Ghana es un país del oeste de África para el cual aparentemente hay limitados estudios cienciométricos. El objetivo de este estudio fue analizar la contribución de Ghana al conocimiento capturado en la base de datos del Índice de Citación Expandido de Ciencia Thomson Reuters (SCI-EXPANDED) de 1936-2016. Se analizaron los siguientes datos: tipo de documento, lenguaje de la publicación, tendencia de la publicación, categorías temáticas de Web of Science, revistas, colaboración internacional, instituciones, autores y artículos frecuentemente citados. Los indicadores como el número total de artículos, artículos de primer autor y artículos de autor de correspondencia se aplicaron para comparar el rendimiento de publicación de países e instituciones colaboradoras. También la cantidad de artículos de una institución: la cantidad de artículos de colaboración nacional: la cantidad de artículos de colaboración internacional (S:N:I) se utilizaron para comparar las características de publicación de las instituciones de Ghana. Los resultados muestran que la tendencia de publicación incrementó de 1998 al 2015 con investigaciones enfocadas en salud y medicina. PLoS One fue la revista más productiva y el país más colaborador para los artículos de Ghana fue EE.UU. Las contribuciones de la Universidad de Ghana se clasificaron como los mejores artículos de Ghana y los artículos con mayores citaciones fueron los de colaboración internacional. En conclusión, la distribución del conocimiento de autores Ghaneses es masiva en las áreas público, ambiental y salud ocupacional y medicina tropical pero el factor de impacto es más alto en artículos de inmunología, enfermedades infecciosas y microbiología. Por lo tanto, los autores Ghaneses están alentados a publicar más artículos en revistas de alto factor de impacto con el Índice de Citación Expandido de Ciencia Thomson Reuters para que sus publicaciones sean reconocidas por las bases de datos internacionales existentes.

Systematic review on the conservation genetics of African savannah elephants.

BACKGROUND: In this paper we review the conservation genetics of African savannah elephants, aiming to understand the spatio-temporal research trends and their underlying factors. As such, we explore three questions associated to the conservation genetics and molecular ecology of these elephants: (1) what are the research trends concerning the conservation genetics of Loxodonta africana? (2) Do richer countries conduct more research on the genetics of African elephants? (3) Which attributes influence where scholars conduct their research? MATERIALS AND METHODS: We examined available peer-reviewed publications from 1993 to 2014 in complementary online databases, including the ISI/Web of Science (WoS), Scopus and Google Scholar (GS), and searched for publications in scientific journals as well as in the reference section of these publications. We analyzed the annual trend of publications in this field of research, including the number of authors, levels of collaboration among authors, year of publication, publishing journal and the countries from where genetic samples were collected. Additionally, we identified main research clusters, authors, and institutional collaborations, based on co-citation and co-occurrence networks. RESULTS: We found that during the study period there was a positive trend in the number of publications and a reduction in the number of authors per paper. Twenty-five countries contributed, with the majority of publications authored by researchers in the USA, Kenya and South Africa. The majority of samples were collected in Kenya, Tanzania and South Africa. Research outputs are associated with the existence of long-term conservation/research projects and research potential as measured by the literacy rate and the number of higher education institutions in a country. Five research clusters were identified, focusing on the origin and evolution of the species, methodological issues and the relatedness among elephant species. CONCLUSIONS: Research in this field should be expanded to additional countries harboring elephant populations to enable a more comprehensive understanding of the population structure and genetic differentiation of the species, and to cope with challenges associated with the conservation of the species such as illegal hunting, habitat fragmentation, species reintroduction and climate change.

Producción científica sobre e-learning en América Latina, un estudio preliminar desde la base de datos SciELO / Scientific production on e-learning in Latin America, a preliminary study from SciELO database

Se esclarecen planteamientos relacionados con los estudios sobre e-learning en el campo de la educación. El principal objetivo está enfocado en presentar una aproximación bibliométrica de la producción científica de esta temática en el contexto de las investigaciones de la región latinoamericana. Para detectar los patrones clave en la productividad se utiliza como fuente de consulta la base de datos SciELO, desde la cual se produjeron anßlisis a partir de indicadores como: tipología documental, productividad por años, revistas, países, idioma y áreas temáticas. Se obtuvieron 610 registros bibliográficos para el período 2000-2013, desde el cual se denota un aumento de la productividad temática a partir de los últimos años. El dominio brasileño se inserta como el más productivo en cuanto a idioma, revistas y país. Como parte de las áreas disciplinares desde las cuales se ha explorado este tópico figuran las Ciencias de la Educación y las Ciencias de la Salud, destacándose así una fuerte proyección multidisciplinar del dominio e-learning.

In this article some arguments related studies on e-learning in the field of education are clarified. The main objective is focused to present a bibliometric approach of the scientific production of this issue in the context of research in the Latin American region. To identify the key patterns in productivity is used as a reference source the SciELO database, from which was applied the indicators: document typology, productivity of years, journals, countries, language, and research areas. About 610 bibliographical records were obtained for the period 2003-2013, which denotes the increasing of productivity from recent years. Brazilian domain is inserted as the most prolific in terms of language, journals, and country. As part of subject areas from which this topic has been explored are included Educational Sciences and Health Sciences, which emphasizes a strong multidisciplinary projection of the e-learning field.

La investigación cubana sobre alfabetización informacional: un análisis de su literatura publicada / Cuban research on information literacy: an analysis of published literature

Caracterizar bibliométricamente la investigación cubana sobre alfabetización informacional (ALFIN), a partir de la literatura publicada desde el 2000 hasta el 2013. Métodos: se fundamentaron nociones conceptuales sobre la ALFIN en el dominio de la Bibliotecología y las Ciencias de la Información y también fueron exploradas algunas investigaciones que fungen como antecedentes de interés. A un grupo de 67 artículos identificados desde la Wiki-Repositorio ALFIN/Iberoamérica-Cuba se les aplicaron los indicadores bibliométricos de productividad por años, autores, revistas y análisis de coocurrencia de términos, así como también tipo de documentos citados y revistas y autores más citados. Mediante el uso de mapas bibliométricos y gráficos fueron presentados los resultados obtenidos. Resultados: a partir del 2007 hubo un alto crecimiento de la temática, y se destacaron como autores más relevantes los procedentes de instituciones del sector de la salud y la educación superior. Las revistas más productivas fueron las del área de la Bibliotecología y las Ciencias de la Información en Cuba. Se detectaron cuatro líneas básicas de investigación: 1) la ALFIN en las ciencias médicas y de la salud, 2) las competencias informacionales en estudiantes universitarios, 3) la evaluación de la ALFIN y 4) el diseño de programas de ALFIN. Los autores tendían a citar mayormente los artículos de las revistas ACIMED, Anales de Documentación, Boletín de la Asociación Andaluza de Bibliotecarios, The Journal of Academic Librarianship y Ciencias de la Información. Los autores que mayor cantidad de citas recibieron fueron extranjeros. Conclusiones: en el estudio quedan esclarecidos los principales patrones de la investigación cubana sobre ALFIN, cuestión que no ha sido examinada anteriormente y que abre camino para el desarrollo de esta temática dentro de la Bibliotecología y las Ciencias de la Información...

Perform a bibliometric characterization of Cuban research on information literacy (INFOLIT) based on the literature published from 2000 to 2013. Methods: substantiation was provided for conceptual notions about INFOLIT in the field of library and information sciences, and some interesting research antecedents were explored. Sixty-seven papers identified by the Ibero-America-Cuba INFOLIT Wiki-Repository were examined with the bibliometric indicators yearly productivity, authors, journals and term co-occurrence analysis, as well as type of documents cited, and most commonly cited journals and authors. Bibliometric maps and graphs were used to present the results obtained. Results: the topic has expanded since 2007. The most outstanding authors were from health and higher education institutions. The most productive journals were from the area of Library Science and Information Sciences in Cuba. Four basic research lines were found: 1) INFOLIT in medical and health sciences, 2) information competences among university students, 3) INFOLIT evaluation and 4) design of INFOLIT syllabuses. The most commonly cited journals were ACIMED, Anales de Documentación, Boletín de la Asociación Andaluza de Bibliotecarios, The Journal of Academic Librarianship and Ciencias de la Información. Overseas authors were more commonly cited. Conclusions: the study shed light on the main Cuban patterns for research on INFOLIT, a matter not examined previously, paving the way for the development of the topic in library and information sciences...

TRENDS IN RESEARCH LINES OF PHDs IN PSYCHOLOGY IN IBEROAMERICAN UNIVERSITIES / Tendencias en las líneas de investigación de doctorados en psicología de universidades iberoamericanas

En este artículo de investigación se analizaron las tendencias en las líneas de investigación declaradas por 32 universidades de Iberoamérica que cuentan con un programa de Doctorado en Psicología. El método de investigación fue exploratorio con corte bibliográfico y diseño descriptivo. Se analizaron en total 308 líneas de investigación y se identificaron tres tendencias: la primera, que agrupa diferentes campos en una sola línea, se encontró que la Psicología Clínica es el área de mayor interés. La segunda identifica líneas que emergen frente a las determinadas en principio, se evidenció como principal interés la cognición, y la tercera las articulaciones frecuentes entre varios campos disciplinares, las cuales se dieron principalmente en la Psicología Clínica y la Psicología de la Salud.

Trends were analyzed in the research lines reported by 32 universities in Ibero-America that have at least a PhD program in Psychology. The research method was exploratory and descriptive with bibliographic cut design. 308 lines of research were analyzed in total and three trends were identified: the first, bringing together different fields on one line. It was found that Clinical Psychology is the area of greatest interest, the second, identifies lines that emerge in front of the ones determined by principles, as the main interest was evidenced cognition, and the third, the frequent joints between various disciplinary fields, which were mainly occur in Clinical Psychology and Health Psychology.

Mapeamento de tendências na produção acadêmica sobre Educação Ambiental / Mapping trends in academic production on Environmental Education

Este trabalho procurou configurar o cenário das pesquisas apresentadas na área de Educação Ambiental - EA nas reuniões anuais da Associação Nacional de Pós-Graduação e Pesquisa em Educação - Anped, no período de 2003 a 2007, a partir da solicitação do grupo de EA da Anped (GT-22). Buscou-se, com isso, elucidar as tendências temáticas, teóricas e metodológicas na produção acadêmica sobre EA e compreender a diversidade que constitui esse campo de investigação e de ação pedagógica. Foram considerados 66 trabalhos apresentados nas cinco reuniões analisadas. Os resultados foram articulados considerando-se: evolução da temática; linha temporal associada à diversificação temática, teórica e metodológica; localização espacial; e articulação entre as áreas ambiental, de educação e de EA. Observa-se concentração da produção no eixo sul-sudeste do Brasil, predominância da abordagem socioambiental e de uma visão crítica da EA ao longo dos anos e ênfase na educação formal e no método qualitativo.

This paper was aimed at setting the stage research in Environmental Education - EE in the annual meetings of the National Association of Graduate Studies and Research in Education between 2003 and 2007, following requests from the area working group (WG-22). Our goal was to elucidate thematic, theoretical and methodological trends in academic research in EE, and to understand the diversity of this research field and pedagogical action. For the analysis we considered 66 papers presented in the five meetings. The results were articulated considering: thematic evolution; timeline regarding theme, theory and methodology diversification; spatial location; and the connections between environmental, educational and EE. It was evident a concentration of production in the southern and southeastern areas of Brazil, the prevalence of a socioenvironmental approach and a critical view of EE over the years, as well as the emphasis on formal education and qualitative methodology.