Ferroptosis and mood disorders: global bibliometric analysis and research frontier hotspots forecast for 2015–2025

Background Since the 2012 definition of ferroptosis as an iron-dependent, lipid peroxidation-driven form of cell death, it has gained broad biomedical interest. However, systematic reviews on its role in mood disorders, such as depression and anxiety, are lacking.Methods We conducted a bibliometric analysis of literature indexed in Web of Science between 2015 and 2025. This included all articles that explored the relationship between ferroptosis and mood disorders or their symptoms. We performed visual analyses of countries/regions, leading journals, keyword co-occurrence clusters, and publication trends using VOSviewer, CiteSpace (version 6.4.R1), and the R Bibliometrix package.Results Publication output grew steadily, with China contributing the most. The leading institutions were Huazhong University of Science and Technology and Chongqing Medical University. The top authors were Li J., Wang J., and Li QQ. High-frequency keywords included ferroptosis, depression, oxidative stress, iron, and anxiety.Key journals Behavioural Brain Research and the International Journal of Molecular Sciences, etc.Conclusions Research remains limited but is expanding, potentially moving from mechanisms toward clinical translation. These findings provide a foundation for further investigating ferroptosis in mood disorders.