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Analysis of institutional authors

Melendez-Oliva, ErikaAuthor

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March 15, 2025
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Relationship Between the Gut Microbiome, Tryptophan-Derived Metabolites, and Osteoarthritis-Related Pain: A Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis

Publicated to:Nutrients. 17 (2): 264- - 2025-01-01 17(2), DOI: 10.3390/nu17020264

Authors: Melendez-Oliva, Erika; Martinez-Pozas, Oliver; Sinatti, Pierluigi; Martin Carreras-Presas, Carmen; Cuenca-Zaldivar, Juan Nicolas; Turroni, Silvia; Sanchez Romero, Eleuterio A

Affiliations

European Univ Madrid, Fac Dent, Oral Med Unit, Special Care Dent Oral Med & Qual Life Res Gorup S, Madrid 28670, Spain - Author
IPPOCRATE Ctr Med Specialist, Via La Spezia 38, Rome, Ladispoli, Italy - Author
Primary Hlth Care Ctr El Abajon, Phys Therapy Unit, Las Rozas De Madrid 28231, Spain - Author
Puerta de Hierro Hlth Res Inst Segovia de Arana ID, Res Grp Nursing & Hlth Care, Majadahonda 28222, Spain - Author
Soc Espanola Disfunc Craneomandibular & Dolor Orof, Physiotherapy & Orofacial Pain Working Grp, Madrid 28009, Spain - Author
Univ Alcala, Fac Enfermeria & Fisioterapia, Dept Fisioterapia, Grp Invest Fisioterapia & Dolor, Alcala De Henares 28801, Spain - Author
Univ Alicante, Grp Opt & Visual Percept, Dept Opt Pharmacol & Anat, Alicante, Spain - Author
Univ Bologna, Dept Pharm & Biotechnol, Unit Microbiome Sci & Biotechnol, Via Belmeloro 6, I-40126 Bologna, Italy - Author
Univ Europea Madrid, Fac Med Hlth & Sports, Dept Physiotherapy, Villaviciosa De Odon 28670, Spain - Author
Univ Europea Madrid, Fac Sport Sci, Interdisciplinary Grp Musculoskeletal Disorders, Villaviciosa De Odon 28670, Spain - Author
Univ Europea Valencia, Dept Ciencias Salud, Grp Invest Cal Vida & Salud, Alicante 03016, Spain - Author
Univ Rey Juan Carlos, Escuela Int Doctorado, Fac Hlth Sci, Alcorcon 28922, Spain - Author
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Abstract

Introduction: Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most prevalent form of arthritis and affects over 528 million people worldwide. Degenerative joint disease involves cartilage degradation, subchondral bone remodeling, and synovial inflammation, leading to chronic pain, stiffness, and impaired joint function. Initially regarded as a "wear and tear" condition associated with aging and mechanical stress, OA is now recognized as a multifaceted disease influenced by systemic factors such as metabolic syndrome, obesity, and chronic low-grade inflammation. Recent studies have focused on the gut-joint axis to investigate how the gut microbiome modulates inflammation and pain in OA. Materials and Methods: A systematic review was conducted following the PRISMA guidelines and was registered with PROSPERO (CRD42024556265). This review included studies involving adults with symptomatic OA and analyzed the relationship between the gut microbiome and OA-related pain. Randomized and non-randomized clinical trials, case reports, editorials, and pilot studies were excluded. Searches were performed in PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science without publication date restrictions, and filtered for "observational studies". The study selection and data extraction were performed by two independent researchers, and the risk of bias was assessed using appropriate tools. Results: Five observational studies were included in the systematic review, and three were included in the meta-analysis. Two studies reported an association between different tryptophan metabolites and pain levels in patients with OA. Two other studies demonstrated a correlation between lipopolysaccharide levels and pain in OA. A fifth study confirmed the relationship between Streptococcus relative abundance of Streptococcus spp. and knee pain. These results were not supported by a meta-analysis, which found no significant association between the presence of pain in OA and the presence of bacilli of the genus Streptococcus or plasma markers of the tryptophan pathway. Conclusions: Current evidence indicates a potential link between gut microbiome dysbiosis and OA-related pain. However, methodological limitations preclude definitive conclusions. Further research using advanced techniques and larger cohorts is needed to validate and extend these findings and elucidate the underlying mechanisms. Targeted manipulation of the gut microbiome may be a valuable strategy for pain management in OA patients.

Keywords

DysbiosisGut microbiomeInflammationOsteoarthritisTryptopha

Quality index

Bibliometric impact. Analysis of the contribution and dissemination channel

The work has been published in the journal Nutrients due to its progression and the good impact it has achieved in recent years, according to the agency WoS (JCR), it has become a reference in its field. In the year of publication of the work, 2025, it was in position 17/112, thus managing to position itself as a Q1 (Primer Cuartil), in the category Nutrition & Dietetics.

Impact and social visibility

From the perspective of influence or social adoption, and based on metrics associated with mentions and interactions provided by agencies specializing in calculating the so-called "Alternative or Social Metrics," we can highlight as of 2025-07-20:

  • The use, from an academic perspective evidenced by the Altmetric agency indicator referring to aggregations made by the personal bibliographic manager Mendeley, gives us a total of: 10.
  • The use of this contribution in bookmarks, code forks, additions to favorite lists for recurrent reading, as well as general views, indicates that someone is using the publication as a basis for their current work. This may be a notable indicator of future more formal and academic citations. This claim is supported by the result of the "Capture" indicator, which yields a total of: 11 (PlumX).

With a more dissemination-oriented intent and targeting more general audiences, we can observe other more global scores such as:

  • The Total Score from Altmetric: 1.5.
  • The number of mentions on the social network Facebook: 1 (Altmetric).
  • The number of mentions on the social network X (formerly Twitter): 2 (Altmetric).

It is essential to present evidence supporting full alignment with institutional principles and guidelines on Open Science and the Conservation and Dissemination of Intellectual Heritage. A clear example of this is:

  • The work has been submitted to a journal whose editorial policy allows open Open Access publication.

Leadership analysis of institutional authors

This work has been carried out with international collaboration, specifically with researchers from: Italy; Oman.

There is a significant leadership presence as some of the institution’s authors appear as the first or last signer, detailed as follows: First Author (Meléndez Oliva, Erika) .