Bibliometrics and potential gene analysis of post-translational modifications in lung cancer

Lung cancer is the most common cancer and the leading cause of cancer-related death. Post-translational modifications (PTMs) play a key role in tumor progression, but the functional mechanisms of many PTM-regulated genes remain unclear. In this study, we performed a bibliometric analysis to systematically evaluate the research trends of lung cancer PTMs worldwide.

Data of Web of Science Core Collection (WOSCC) from 2000 to March 2025 were used to analyze the publication trends, collaboration networks, and keyword networks. Then, the functions of these genes were investigated by constructing protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis. Finally, unstudied genes were screened by constructing a differential gene set between the PTM database and genes retrieved from published articles. And their potential functions were explored by gene differential expression analysis, prognosis analysis, PTM pattern analysis, Gene Ontology (GO) analysis, and KEGG analysis.

China was the main contributor, followed by the United States and South Korea. Phosphorylation and methylation were the most studied PTMs, with STAT3 being the most reported gene. GO and KEGG analysis linked PTM-related genes to pathways such as cell cycle regulation. A total of 7,523 unstudied PTM-related genes in lung cancer were screened based on the PTM database. Differential expression and survival analysis revealed 134 candidate genes with potential functional relevance, mainly related to nuclear division and mitosis.

This study highlights the growing interest in lung cancer PTM research and identifies a group of genes that have not been studied and may become novel therapeutic targets.