Objective To analyze the knowledge evolution context, patent genealogy characteristics and prospective innovation directions of Euphorbia plant research, and clarify the efficiency of achievement transformation and the global competitive pattern, this study adopts bibliometric and knowledge graph analysis methods, combined with patent information lineage analysis technology to carry out systematic research. Methods The relevant literature in the CNKI, Wanfang, VIP and Web of Science Core Collection were systematically searched with Euphorbia pekinensis and Euphorbia as the subject words, imported into NoteExpress literature management software for deduplication, screening and format conversion, and CiteSpace and VOSviewer software were used to visualize the annual publication trends, the publishing country, institution, author, journal distribution, discipline distribution and other dimensions of Chinese and English literature. At the same time, based on the Incopat patent database, the application and distribution status of patents related to Euphorbia plants were systematically analyzed from aspects such as the number of patent applications and geographical distribution patterns. Results After the screening procedure, a total of 1 682 Chinese literature and 1 339 English literature were incorporated into the study, indicating that the research of Euphorbia plants was at the international stage. A total of 98 countries had issued documents, among which China had published the most achievements. The author with the largest number of publications in both Chinese and English was Zhang Li. The core publishing institutions of the Chinese and English literature were Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine and the United States Department of Agriculture. The cooperation connections between these institutions were still relatively scattered, but some authors had formed stable research teams. The Chinese and English journals with the highest number of articles published were China Journal of Chinese Materia Medica and Journal of Ethnopharmacology. The English literature mainly involved plant science and extended to pharmacology, medicinal chemistry and other fields. The Incopat patent database retrieved 8 350 patents related to Euphorbia plants, and 5 603 domestic patents, accounting for 67.1% of the total, which was in a dominant position. Conclusion Research on Euphorbia plants shows a pattern dominated by China, coexisting with global participation. The fundamental research system in this field has become increasingly well-established, with remarkable progress in the modernization of traditional medicinal applications and broad prospects for industrial transformation, but there are still problems such as regional development imbalance. In the future, it should deepen the basic theory, promote interdisciplinary research, optimize the patent layout, and realize the efficient transformation and sustainable development of resource value.

Euphorbia L.  /  CiteSpace  /  VOSviewer  /  bibliometrics  /  knowledge graph  /  patent layout