Irrelevant and Indirect Citations on 10.1371/journal.pone.0313585
Several references on this article [1] are irrelevant or indirect to the original sources.
Only references cited on the "Introduction" section (15 of the total 38 references) were analyzed. Two citation to books were excluded, and finally, 13 citations were analyzed. By comparing the citation statements with the title, abstract and the full text of the cited article, we identified the following citations are either irrelevant or indirect to the original sources:
Reference 1: indirect to the original sources
The article [1] cites its reference 1 stating "according to GLOBOCAN’s 2020 estimations, 314,000 women were diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2020, resulting in 207,000 fatalities". However, the cited article [2] (Ref 1 on article [1]) is not a study on GLOBOCAN. The information was extracted from the first paragraph on article [2], which cited another article [3] about a study on GLOBOCAN. Therefore, reference 1 on the article [1] is indirect to the original sources.
Reference 2: irrelevant citation
The article [1] cites its reference 2 stating "ovarian cancer is the eighth most common cancer in women, both in terms of incidence and fatality". However, the cited article [4] (Ref 2 on article [1]), titled "Global burden of colorectal cancer in 2020 and 2040: incidence and mortality estimates from GLOBOCAN", is about colorectal cancer instead of ovarian cancer. Therefore, the reference 2 on the article [1] is irrelevant.
Reference 3: irrelevant citation
The article [1] cites its reference 3 stating "survival for 5 years when ovarian cancer is diagnosed in stage-I is 94%, constituting only 15% of all diagnoses, whereas 62% of cases of ovarian cancer are diagnosed in stages III and IV, where the 5-year survival is only 28%". However, the cited article [5] (Ref 3 on article [1]), titled "Paclitaxel plus platinum-based chemotherapy versus conventional platinum-based chemotherapy in women with relapsed ovarian cancer: the ICON4/AGO-OVAR-2.2 trial", is about a trial of chemotherapy. The article [5] dose not mention the general survival of the patients with ovarian cancer diagnosed in stages III and IV, and dose not mention the survival rate in their trial was 28%, either. Therefore, the reference 3 on the article [1] is irrelevant.
Reference 5: irrelevant citation
The article [1] cites its reference 5 stating "traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) offers a fascinating route for investigating possible inhibitors targeting Phosphoserine Aminotransferase 1 (PSAT1) in early-stage ovarian cance". However, the cited article [6] (Ref 5 on article [1]), titled "Tanshinone IIA targeting cell signaling pathways: a plausible paradigm for cancer therapy", is not a study targeting Phosphoserine Aminotransferase 1 (PSAT1). Therefore, the reference 5 on the article [1] is irrelevant.
Reference 6: irrelevant citation
The article [1] cites its reference 6 stating "TCM’s holistic approach and abundance of natural substances are leveraged in this regard". However, the cited article [7] (Ref 6 on article [1]), titled "Traditional Chinese Medicine and Gut Microbiome: Their Respective and Concert Effects on Healthcare", is not about the "holistic approach and abundance of natural substances" of the traditional Chinese medicine. Therefore, the reference 6 on the article [1] is irrelevant.
Reference 12: irrelevant citation
The article [1] cites its reference 12 stating "the study aims to find a novel approach to early-stage ovarian cancer treatment using computational identification and validation of possible TCM inhibitors targeting PSAT1". However, the cited article [8] (Ref 12 on article [1]), titled "Identification of 5-nitroindazole as a multitargeted inhibitor for CDK and transferase kinase in lung cancer: a multisampling algorithm-based structural study", is not about a study targeting PSAT1 nor about a study on ovarian cancer. Therefore, the reference 12 on the article [1] is irrelevant.
Reference 13: irrelevant citation
The article [1] cites its reference 13 stating "the study aims to find a novel approach to early-stage ovarian cancer treatment using computational identification and validation of possible TCM inhibitors targeting PSAT1". However, the cited article [9] (Ref 13 on article [1]), titled "Multisampling-based docking reveals Imidazolidinyl urea as a multitargeted inhibitor for lung cancer: an optimisation followed multi-simulation and in-vitro study", is not about a study targeting PSAT1 nor about a study on ovarian cancer. Therefore, the reference 13 on the article [1] is irrelevant.
Reference 15: irrelevant citation
The article [1] cites its reference 15 stating "by providing light on possible TCM-based inhibitors targeting PSAT1, this publication seeks to further the knowledge in the area and open the door for additional preclinical and clinical research in the search for better treatment approaches for early-stage ovarian cancer". However, the cited article [10] (Ref 15 on article [1]), titled "Predictive modeling and therapeutic repurposing of natural compounds against the receptor-binding domain of SARS-CoV-2", is not about a study targeting PSAT1 nor about a study on ovarian cancer. Therefore, the reference 15 on the article [1] is irrelevant.
We also notice that the irrelevant citations [8, 9] were coauthored by Raza K, a coauthor of the article [1], suggesting these two article may be intentionally cited to increase the citations to Raza K.
Reference
[1] 10.1371/journal.pone.0313585
[4] 10.1136/gutjnl-2022-327736
[5] 10.1016/S0140-6736(03)13718-X
[6] 10.1007/s43440-023-00507-y
[8] 10.1007/s11030-023-10648-0
