Our Highly Cited Researchers in 2024
The Sainsbury Laboratory is delighted to spot three of our group leaders on the Highly Cited Researchers™ list for 2024. Now in its 11th year, the list recognises the most influential researchers on a global scale, representing those ranking in the top 1% by citations for their field.
Analysts at the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI)™ have recognized 6,636 Highly Cited Researchers in 2024 from more than 1,200 institutions in 59 nations and regions. The rigorous evaluation and selection process draws on data from the Web of Science Core Collection™ citation index, together with qualitative analysis performed by experts at the ISI at Clarivate™.
The Sainsbury Laboratory researchers who make the list for 2024 are Professor Jonathan Jones FRS, Professor Sophien Kamoun FRS, and Professor Cyril Zipfel.
The list provides valuable insights into the global landscape of top research talent and identifies trends across countries, regions and institutions. Mainland China and Hong Kong SAR made sizeable gains, while the United States gradually lost share. This trend reflects a geographic, political and cultural rebalancing of top-tier scientific and scholarly contributions.
“TSL group leaders have been part of the highly cited researcher list since its creation, demonstrating the influence and impact of the research that we carry out." says Professor Nick Talbot FRS, Executive Director of The Sainsbury Laboratory.
"I am very proud to see the research at TSL recognised in the 2024 list and this achievement is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our entire TSL family, including postdocs, students, and staff from across the institute. I am deeply grateful for their invaluable contributions, which extend beyond our institute to enrich the entire field of molecular plant-microbe interactions."
“TSL group leaders have been part of the highly cited researcher list since its creation, demonstrating the influence and impact of the research that we carry out." says Professor Nick Talbot FRS, Executive Director of The Sainsbury Laboratory.
"I am very proud to see the research at TSL recognised in the 2024 list and this achievement is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our entire TSL family, including postdocs, students, and staff from across the institute. I am deeply grateful for their invaluable contributions, which extend beyond our institute to enrich the entire field of molecular plant-microbe interactions."
Professor Jonathan Jones studies how plants resist disease, and how pathogens evade or suppress the detection and resistance mechanisms of their plant hosts.
Professor Sophien Kamoun studies the interactions between plants and filamentous pathogens, notably the Irish potato famine organism Phytophthora infestans and the rice and wheat blast fungus Magnaporthe oryzae.
Professor Cyril Zipfel studies the molecular basis of plant innate immunity and aims to decipher signalling events linking the perception of pathogen-associated molecules to the establishment of immunity.
The UK is ranked third overall with 563 highly cited researchers behind the US (2,507) and China (1,405). This is a particularly high number of researchers at the very top of their fields in terms of citation impact, given that the United Kingdom has a population 1/5 the size of the United States and 1/20 the size of Mainland China.
About The Sainsbury Laboratory
The Sainsbury Laboratory (tsl.ac.uk) is an independent research institute that focuses on plant health for a sustainable future. It makes fundamental scientific discoveries in molecular plant-microbe interactions and applies these to reduce crop losses caused by plant diseases, particularly in low-income countries. Around one hundred and twenty staff and students work and study at the Laboratory which is located on the Norwich Research Park, United Kingdom. The Laboratory is generously supported by the Gatsby Charitable Foundation and by the University of East Anglia, wins competitive grants from the BBSRC, ERC and other research grant funding bodies and, for some research programmes, is funded by commercial companies. Established in 1987, highlights of The Sainsbury Laboratory include: discovery of RNA interference in plants by Prof. Sir David Baulcombe FRS as recognised by the Lasker Award and the Wolf Prize in Agriculture, discovery of the first immune receptor in plants by Prof. Jonathan Jones FRS, three current Group Leaders are Fellows of the Royal Society, and five researchers who have been on the Highly Cited Researchers list of top 1% scientists in the world since 2018.
