SynthesisPhytotherapy research : PTR2026
Flavonoids as Anxiolytics in Animal Tests: Systematic Review, Meta-Analysis, and Bibliometrical Analysis.
Synthesis in Phytotherapy research : PTR, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Flavonoids as Anxiolytics in Animal Tests: Systematic Review, Meta-Analysis, and Bibliometrical Analysis.Phytotherapy research : PTR · 2026Pooled it
- Ethnobotanical Uses and Phytochemical, Pharmacological, Behavioral, and Toxicological Effects ofMolecules (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Article
- Anxiolytic Effects ofInternational journal of general medicine · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Flavonoids are natural secondary metabolites of plants with a basic composition derived from polyphenols that can produce a plethora of different neurophysiological effects, some of which are relevant to anxiety disorders. As such, many flavonoids have been evaluated in behavioral screens in preclinical research on anxiolytics. We sought to map the potential of flavonoids as anxiolytics by bibliometric analysis and a systematic review and meta-analysis of animal tests using these compounds. Bibliometric analysis suggests that the field is highly concentrated on a few research groups mostly located in the Global South, suggesting the need to improve international collaborations. The themes which emerged in the bibliometric analysis are driven by the exploratory steps of pharmacological research, including finding anxio-selective effects and looking for dose-response patterns. This suggests that the field, as a whole, could benefit from more mechanistic and confirmatory research. The systematic review included 38 articles, with a total of k = 183 comparisons, comprising 43 different molecules. The meta-analysis showed strong evidence for an anxiolytic-like effect of flavonoids on animal tests, including assays made in rats, mice, and zebrafish (SMD = -1.457, 95% CI [-1.365 to -0.9264]). Subgroup analysis suggested that this effect is present in acute treatment (SMD = -1.0985 (95% CI: -1.31 to -0.88)), but not after chronic treatment (SMD = -1.96, 95% CI [-4.93; 1.01]). Study quality was overall moderate. We finish with a set of recommendations for preclinical research on the anxiolytic potential of flavonoids.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.