Four Tufts University faculty are named top researchers in the world

(Press-News.org) Four Tufts researchers have been named to a ranking of the world’s most highly cited researchers. The researchers in the Clarivate 2024 list have a significant impact on the research community as judged by the rate their work is cited by their peers, according to Clarivate, an information and analytics firm focused on research.

The highly cited papers rank in the top 1% by citations for a field or fields and publication year, and only about 1 in 1,000 researchers worldwide qualify.

The Tufts researchers are David Kaplan, Renata Micha, Dariush Mozaffarian, and John Wong. 

“Their pioneering innovations contribute to a healthier, more sustainable, and secure world,” said David Pendlebury, head of research analysis at the Institute for Scientific Information at Clarivate. “These researchers’ achievements strengthen the foundation of excellence and innovation that drives societal progress.”

For this year’s analysis, the papers surveyed were the most recent available—those published and cited during 2013 to 2023.

“This recognition of our talented faculty is very well-deserved,” said Bernard Arulanandam, vice provost for research at Tufts. “Their contributions in such divergent fields show the strength of the research program at the university, and I congratulate each of them for their achievements.”

David Kaplan is the Stern Family Professor of Engineering, a professor of biomedical engineering, and Distinguished University Professor, and holds appointments in several Tufts schools and departments. His research focus is on biopolymer engineering, tissue engineering, regenerative medicine, and cellular agriculture. He has published more than 1,000 peer-reviewed papers, is editor-in-chief of ACS Biomaterials Science & Engineering, and serves on many editorial boards and programs for journals and universities.

He directs the Kaplan Lab and the Initiative for Neural Science, Disease & Engineering; is co- investigator at the NIH-sponsored Tissue Engineering Resource Center; and is director of the USDA-sponsored Institute for Cellular Agriculture at Tufts. He has received a number of awards for teaching, is an elected fellow of the National Academy of Engineering, National Academy of Inventors, and the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineering, and has received the Columbus Discovery Medal and the Society for Biomaterials’ Clemson Award.  

Renata Micha is an adjunct associate professor at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy. She has expertise in nutritional and chronic disease epidemiology—focusing on diet assessment and modeling of impacts on cardiometabolic health—and in nutrition and health policy.

Micha has particular interest and experience in global dietary assessment among various population subgroups, identifying causal diet-disease relationships, quantifying and modeling the impact of dietary habits on cardiometabolic disease outcomes, and evaluating the comparative- and cost-effectiveness of nutrition-sensitive population interventions to address these disease burdens.

Dariush Mozaffarian is director of the Food is Medicine Institute at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, Distinguished Professor, Jean Mayer Professor, dean emeritus of the Friedman School, and professor of medicine at the School of Medicine. His work aims to create the science and translation for a food system that is nutritious, equitable, and sustainable. 

A cardiologist, he has authored nearly 600 scientific publications on nutrition and chronic diseases, and on evidence-based policy innovations to reduce these burdens in the United States and globally. He has served in numerous advisory roles including for the U.S. and Canadian governments, and currently serves on the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition.

John B. Wong is vice chair of academic affairs, chief of clinical decision making, and a primary care physician in the Department of Medicine at Tufts Medical Center, and a professor of medicine at the Tufts University School of Medicine. He is also the director of comparative effectiveness research at the Tufts Clinical and Translational Science Institute. He is also a vice chair on the United States Preventive Services Task Force.

His research focuses on the application of decision analysis to help patients, health care professionals, and policymakers choose among alternative tests, treatments, and policies. The aim is to promote rational, evidence-based, efficient, and effective patient-centered care. He has served on national and international committees, including the World Health Organization, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Academy of Medicine, and U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. 

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