Two plant molecular scientists at Plant & Food Research – Professor Andrew Allan and Dr Richard Espley – have been named in the 2024 Clarivate Highly Cited Researchers. This accolade highlights researchers whose work ranks in the top 1% of cited research globally, underscoring its wide-ranging influence and scholarly excellence.

Professor Allan, who has a joint appointment at the University of Auckland, continues a distinguished streak as one of the world’s leading experts in plant biology, making this his fifth consecutive appearance on the list, and sixth since 2017. Dr Espley joins the list for the first time this year.

Both Professor Allan and Dr Espley work in the field of plant genomics. Professor Allan undertakes research to identify and understand the genes associated with a range of plant characteristics, including flower development and colour. Dr Espley focuses on the genetic regulation of plant metabolites, particularly those related to fruit colour, and how the environment influences gene activity. They work closely together on some projects and have co-authored 60 publications.

The Clarivate Highly Cited Researchers list identifies the most influential researchers worldwide, as determined by their exceptional impact on their peers. Researchers featured on this list are selected based on a thorough analysis of citation data from Clarivate’s Web of Science^™ platform, underscoring the global relevance and reach of their scientific contributions.

Source: Plant & Food Research