blog

2022 marked another successful year for F1000Research and our authors. Here, we look back at some of our most popular research last year.  

2022 was a busy year for F1000Research. Over 1,180 articles were published on the Platform by authors from 89 countries and over 800 institutions worldwide.   

Research articles continue to be the leading article type for our authors, representing 58% of articles published in 2022. Of the many non-traditional article types available to publish, Case Reports, Systematic Reviews, and Study Protocols are the most frequent choice among our authors.  

Articles published on F1000Research in 2022 accrued over 370,000 views and 25,000 downloads last year. But which articles attracted the most attention from the research community? 

Our most-read articles of 2022 are those that received the highest number of views across F1000Research and PubMed Central, where they are also indexed. Articles must have already passed peer review to be considered.   

Let’s take a look at the top 5 research outputs of 2022! 

#1: Contaminants in the cow’s milk we consume? Pasteurization and other technologies in the elimination of contaminants 

Micaela Belen Calahorrano-Moreno, Jonathan Jerry Ordoñez-Bailon, Ricardo José Baquerizo-Crespo, Alex Alberto Dueñas-Rivadeneira, Maria Conceição B. S. M. Montenegro, Joan Manuel Rodríguez-Díaz 

The authors of this exhaustive Review article outline the different types of contaminants in pasteurized cow’s milk and their potential effects on human health.  

“Although pathogenic microorganisms are considered the main hazard that threatens the safety of milk, they do not represent the highest percentage of reported cases,” note the authors. “The contaminants that have been more reported in the literature are of chemical origin.” The most reported chemical contaminants are heavy metals, pesticides, and antibiotics, yet mycotoxins and hormones are still a concern.  

Critically, the authors analyze how alternative processes to pasteurization might eliminate or degrade contaminants to allow for safer consumption of cow’s milk.  They conclude that while alternative methods have proven to be efficient in degrading several contaminants, they are still not sufficient or applied on an industrial scale. 

A valuable contribution to the literature on food safety, the article generated over 4,570 views and over 370 downloads less than 1 year following its publication.  

#2: Framing and understanding the whole aspect of oral sex from social and health perspectives: a narrative review 

Cennikon Pakpahan, Darmadi Darmadi, Agustinus Agustinus, Andri Rezano 

In this paper, the authors present a narrative Review of social and health perspectives on oral sex. The authors explore a variety of topics, including attitudes toward oral sex, the impact of pop culture, and moral and religious implications.   

The Review received almost 4,000 views by the end of 2022 and offers a novel contribution to the literature on sexual behavior.  

#3: COVID-19, Cation Dysmetabolism, Sialic Acid, CD147, ACE2, Viroporins, Hepcidin and Ferroptosis: A Possible Unifying Hypothesis 

Attilio Cavezzi, Roberto Menicagli, Emidio Troiani, Salvatore Corrao 

This Review article by Attilio et al. connects the link between COVID-19 and ferroptosis, an iron-dependent form of cell death. The Review is the outcome of an analysis of almost 500 articles from biomedical literature published between January 2020 and mid-December 2021. 

The authors summarize the probable events that lead to ferroptosis by detailing the main pathological steps of the SARS-CoV-2 attack to cell membrane. 

“Our hypothesis may represent a starting basis for future discussions about the pathophysiology of this relatively known disease,” note the authors. 

By the end of 2022, the Review had received over 2,300 views, over 380 downloads, and 4 citations. 
 

#4: The effects of beliefs, knowledge, and attitude on herbal medicine use during the COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-sectional survey in Indonesia 

Heri Kristianto, Bayu Anggileo Pramesona, Yafi Sabila Rosyad, Lili Andriani, Tri Antika Rizki Kusuma Putri, Yohanes Andy Rias 

In this Research Article, the authors explore factors that impacted herbal medicine use during the COVID-19 pandemic. The authors assessed the roles of magical health beliefs, holistic health beliefs, knowledge of herbal medicine, and pro-attitudes toward herbal medicine.  

“These findings may help health policymakers to include herbal drugs’ availability in treatment centers,” says one peer reviewer. “People should be encouraged to use herbal drugs with proven efficacy and safety.” 

The article garnered over 2,000 views and almost 150 downloads in 2022. It is also featured in the F1000Research Sociology of Health Gateway.  

#5: Harmonisation of welfare indicators for macaques and marmosets used or bred for research 

Mark J. Prescott, Matthew C. Leach, Melissa A. Truelove  

This Research Article from the NC3Rs Gateway received over 1,800 views and 245 downloads in 2022. The authors aimed to identify shared indicators for the level of welfare of macaques and marmosets in research laboratories, using a Delphi consultation during an NC3Rs meeting on primate welfare. 

As a result, the authors have identified those indicators considered the most important by experts. Plus, they have narrowed the field for further investigation and validation of both species-specific and general indicators. 

“These are the kind of studies which are really needed to improve the conditions of [non-human primates] in captivity, so I really applaud the authors’ efforts,” concludes one reviewer. 

Congratulations to all our most read authors of 2022! 

From all of us at F1000, thank you to all the authors and peer reviewers who have published and reviewed with F1000Research this year. We’re equally grateful to our Gateway and Collection Advisors for providing their strategic insights. 

We look forward to seeing more cutting-edge research published in 2023, and to welcoming more authors to the Platform. If you’re new to F1000Research and interested in publishing your research openly, visit our ‘How it works’ page to see what you can expect when submitting your research.