Background: The discovery of new neurological therapeutic agents is one of the most active areas of research and development (R&D) in China. This paper intends to find out the leading Chinese institutes in neurological drug research based on co-authorship and to reveal the research directions of identified communities.

Methods: 629 papers published during 2008-2013 under the subject categories “Pharmacology & Pharmacy” or “Integrative & Complementary Medicine” combining with “Clinical Neurology”, containing a Chinese institute in the author’s address were retrieved from the Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE) Database. We used research collaboration associations to define an institutional network and network communities to identify the research topics of each community.

Results: Key participants in the network are mainly located in Shanghai and Taiwan, while the ones from Hong Kong are acting as a bridge for knowledge exchange between mainland China and Taiwan. These sample articles cover a wide range of topics, in which depression, schizophrenia, serotonin and genetic polymorphism are the most extensively studied issues.

Conclusions: Collaborations across regions and between academia, clinics, and industry need to be further enhanced. Meanwhile, this study may provide guidance for researchers, clinicians, and investors to cooperate and in turn improve efficiency in drug discovery process.