Mapping the research activities in environmental health and toxicology: a review of the trends, gaps and opportunities

Abstract

In this paper, we attempted to map out the research activities in ‘environmental health and toxicology’ through a ‘scientometric analysis’ of the world research outputs. The aim was to identify the historical and current research trajectories in the subject and locate the possible gap in the existing literature. Considering the fact that in the absence of an in-depth analysis of the trends in research, it is utterly possible that some areas of research get more than adequate attention from the global research and policy community, while some equally important areas of the subject remain completely unaddressed or neglected. Our motive is to provide the scientific community, policymakers and academicians a clear picture of ‘where environmental health and toxicology research is heading today and where is the gap in existing studies’. The results of our study show that the publication interest on the topic has observed a constant development during the past 21 years. Nevertheless, considering the intense growth of researches on medical sciences, we argue that environmental health and toxicology research needs further attention in a pollution-laden global environment. We observe a lack of representation from countries and institutes from the global south and thus argue that the current research trends on the topic calls for more research focus on environmental health and toxicology from the institutes and universities present in the developing world. This could be achieved by exploring more collaborative opportunities by the research organizations in both the global north and global south, more research infrastructure and funding in the developing countries, creating adequate human resources through capacity building and training exercises, etc. We further argue that the pioneering journals in the field may contribute or encourage participation of the researchers from the developing world in environmental health and toxicology research by calling for ‘special issues’, especially on the topics of significance of those countries and ensure adequate representation of diverse topics across the globe. Finally, we would like to conclude that it is indispensable for the international research community to appositely recognize the gap in research on environmental health and toxicology and holistically attend to the concerns of significance. It is up to them and the policymakers to ensure that no significant aspect of research is left behind due to inadequate research and policy attention.