Evolving target: A 16-year progressive framework for shifting the rubric of scientific publishing toward transparency, artificial intelligence, and the Economic Impact Factor for impact that matters

Table 1 Top 10 most-frequently-cited articles

No.	Citation information of articles	Article type	Number of years published	Citations in RCA
1	Kyurkchiev D, Bochev I, Ivanova-Todorova E, Mourdjeva M, Oreshkova T, Belemezova K, Kyurkchiev S. Secretion of immunoregulatory cytokines by mesenchymal stem cells. World J Stem Cells 2014; 6: 552-570 [PMID: 25426252 DOI: 10.4252/wjsc.v6.i5.552]	Review	9	398
2	Casteilla L, Planat-Benard V, Laharrague P, Cousin B. Adipose-derived stromal cells: Their identity and uses in clinical trials, an update. World J Stem Cells 2011; 3: 25-33 [PMID: 21607134 DOI: 10.4252/wjsc.v3.i4.25]	Editorial	12	392
3	De Becker A, Riet IV. Homing and migration of mesenchymal stromal cells: How to improve the efficacy of cell therapy? World J Stem Cells 2016; 8: 73-87 [PMID: 27022438 DOI: 10.4252/wjsc.v8.i3.73]	Review	7	304
4	Glenn JD, Whartenby KA. Mesenchymal stem cells: Emerging mechanisms of immunomodulation and therapy. World J Stem Cells 2014; 6: 526-539 [PMID: 25426250 DOI: 10.4252/wjsc.v6.i5.526]	Review	9	272
5	Nagamura-Inoue T, He H. Umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells: Their advantages and potential clinical utility. World J Stem Cells 2014; 6: 195-202 [PMID: 24772246 DOI: 10.4252/wjsc.v6.i2.195]	Topic highlight	9	240
6	Zhang S, Cui W. Sox2, a key factor in the regulation of pluripotency and neural differentiation. World J Stem Cells 2014; 6: 305-311 [PMID: 25126380 DOI: 10.4252/wjsc.v6.i3.305]	Topic highlight	9	210
7	Tsuji W, Rubin JP, Marra KG. Adipose-derived stem cells: Implications in tissue regeneration. World J Stem Cells 2014; 6: 312-321 [PMID: 25126381 DOI: 10.4252/wjsc.v6.i3.312]	Review	9	196
8	Park A, Kim WK, Bae KH. Distinction of white, beige and brown adipocytes derived from mesenchymal stem cells. World J Stem Cells 2014; 6: 33-42 [PMID: 24567786 DOI: 10.4252/wjsc.v6.i1.33]	Topic highlight	9	168
9	Cabrera MC, Hollingsworth RE, Hurt EM. Cancer stem cell plasticity and tumor hierarchy. World J Stem Cells 2015; 7: 27-36 [PMID: 25621103 DOI: 10.4252/wjsc.v7.i1.27]	Review	8	168
10	Chaicharoenaudomrung N, Kunhorm P, Noisa P. Three-dimensional cell culture systems as an in vitro platform for cancer and stem cell modeling. World J Stem Cells 2019; 11: 1065-1083 [PMID: 31875869 DOI: 10.4252/wjsc.v11.i12.1065]	Review	4	168

RCA: Reference Citation Analysis.

Table 2 Top 10 most-frequently-cited junior authors

No.	Name	Institution	Country
1	Ann De Becker	Universitair Ziekenhuis Brussel	Belgium
2	Nipha Chaicharoenaudomrung	Suranaree University of Technology	Thailand
3	Marina Carla Cabrera	MedImmune, LLC	United States
4	Denisa L Dragu	Stefan S. Nicolau Institute of Virology	Romania
5	Christiana Hadjimichael	University of Crete	Greece
6	Pravin D Potdar	Jaslok Hospital and Research Centre	India
7	Laleh Ghasemi-Mobarakeh	Isfahan University of Technology	Iran
8	Anne Seifert	Bonn-Rhine-Sieg University of Applied Sciences	Germany
9	María Álvarez-Viejo	Hospital Universitario Central de Asturias	Spain
10	Oleh Andrukhov	University Clinic of Dentistry, Medical University of Vienna	Austria

Table 3 Top 5 most-impactful clinical trials

No.	Citation information of articles	Number of years published	Citations in RCA
1	Tsang KS, Ng CPS, Zhu XL, Wong GKC, Lu G, Ahuja AT, Wong KSL, Ng HK, Poon WS. Phase I/II randomized controlled trial of autologous bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cell therapy for chronic stroke. World J Stem Cells 2017; 9: 133-143 [PMID: 28928910 DOI: 10.4252/wjsc.v9.i8.133]	6	27
2	Plesa A, Dumontet C, Mattei E, Tagoug I, Hayette S, Sujobert P, Tigaud I, Pages MP, Chelghoum Y, Baracco F, Labussierre H, Ducastelle S, Paubelle E, Nicolini FE, Elhamri M, Campos L, Plesa C, Morisset S, Salles G, Bertrand Y, Michallet M, Thomas X. High frequency of CD34+CD38-/Low immature leukemia cells is correlated with unfavorable prognosis in acute myeloid leukemia. World J Stem Cells 2017; 9: 227-234 [PMID: 29321824 DOI: 10.4252/wjsc.v9.i12.227]	6	20
3	Santiago-Torres JE, Lovasz R, Bertone AL. Fetal vs adult mesenchymal stem cells achieve greater gene expression, but less osteoinduction. World J Stem Cells 2015; 7: 223-234 [PMID: 25621122 DOI: 10.4252/wjsc.v7.i1.223]	8	9
4	Shroff G. Therapeutic potential of human embryonic stem cells in type 2 diabetes mellitus. World J Stem Cells 2016; 8: 223-230 [PMID: 27468331 DOI: 10.4252/wjsc.v8.i7.223]	7	9
5	Dahabreh Z, Panteli M, Pountos I, Howard M, Campbell P, Giannoudis PV. Ability of bone graft substitutes to support the osteoprogenitor cells: An in-vitro study. World J Stem Cells 2014; 6: 497-504 [PMID: 25258672 DOI: 10.4252/wjsc.v6.i4.497]	9	6

RCA: Reference Citation Analysis.

Table 4 Thematic topics and representations of publications

Number	Topics
1	From idea to impact: Embracing translational progress from bench to bedside in stem cell research
2	Stem cell-driven morphogenesis
3	How mesenchymal stem cells transform into adipocytes
4	Clinical application of mesenchymal stem cell-based therapy
5	Hair follicle stem cell markers and their regulatory roles
6	Exosomes from mesenchymal stem cells on the functional recovery of total radial nerve injury

Table 5 Clarivate™ groups journals by indexes (https://clarivate.com/, assessed on July 6, 2025)

Index	Journal count	Typical JIF range	Notes
SCIE	9200	1.5-5.0	Core high-citation journals
SSCI	3400	0.5-3.0	Lower citation density
AHCI	1800	< 1.0 (often 0.2)	JIF rarely used
ESCI	7800	0.3-1.5	Mostly new, regional, or low-citation journals

Clarivate™ is a global provider of transformative intelligence, offering data, insights & analytics, workflow solutions, and expert services. They provide access to connected data and solutions across the healthcare ecosystem, enabling clients to act quickly and confidently. Clarivate aims to provide intelligence that transforms how clients operate and make decisions. JIF: Journal Impact Factor; SCIE: Science Citation Index Expanded; SSCI: Social Sciences Citation Index; AHCI: Arts & Humanities Citation Index; ESCI: Emerging Sources Citation Index.

Table 6 Stage classification

EIF tier	Descriptor	Example metric	Weight (W)
Tier I	Foundational scientific discovery (gene sequencing, biochemical structure)	2003 publication	1.0
Tier II	Intellectual property generation	≥ 5 core patents citing or derived from this strain sequence (e.g., Allergan BoNT A1 formulation, purification methods)	2.0
Tier III	Translational uptake	FDA IND/NDA filings, clinical protocols using Hall A strain	3.0
Tier IV	Commercial deployment	Annual BOTOX® revenue ≈ $ 2.3 B	4.0
Tier V	Societal/regulatory impact	Inclusion in CDC, WHO classification; reimbursement frameworks; global adoption	5.0

EIF: Economic Impact Factor; FDA: Food and Drug Administration; IND: Investigational new drug; NDA: New drug application; CDC: Centres for Disease Control and Prevention; WHO: World Health Organization.

Table 7 Quantitative inputs

Parameter	Source/proxy	Normalization
Policy/regulatory citations	12 citations in FDA/EMA guidelines referencing BoNT-A complex characterization	0.8
Patent citations	27 USPTO patents citing or building on Hall A gene sequence	0.9
Start-up/corporate utilization	1 major corporate line (allergan → AbbVie post-2020)	1.0
Revenue attribution	$2.3 B annual revenue; 20 years post-publication ≥ $46 B cumulative	1.0
Healthcare cost-savings proxy	Reduction in migraine-related ER visits ≈ $0.5 B annual savings (United States estimate)	0.6

FDA: Food and Drug Administration; EMA: European Medicines Agency; USPTO: United States Patent and Trademark Office.

Table 8 Contextual summary

Domain	Measurable output
Scientific impact	Genetic and structural elucidation of BoNT/A complex enabling precision manufacturing
Economic impact	Sustained > $2 B annual product revenue since 2003 → AbbVie portfolio mainstay
Regulatory impact	FDA/EMA safety dossiers reference Hall A sequence data for product validation
Innovation multiplier	Spurred new BoNT serotype development, biosimilars, and cosmetic/therapeutic indications
EIF score (normalized)	0.92/1.00 - high translational and economic value

FDA: Food and Drug Administration; EMA: European Medicines Agency; EIF: Economic Impact Factor.