Blumwald, Buckley named “highly cited” researchers

Two scientists in the Department of Plant Sciences -- Eduardo Blumwald and Tom Buckley -- have been named “highly cited researchers” in the field of plant and animal science for 2024 by the citation index Web of Science, owned by Clarivate.

They are among nine UC Davis researchers named for 2024. The distinction is based on the frequency their published work is cited by other scientists, showing “significant and broad influence in their fields,” according to Clarivate.

For Blumwald, it’s the eighth year in a row he has received the honor. He is a distinguished professor and holds the Will W. Lester Endowed Chair. He studies the molecular and celluar responses of crops to stress.

Blumwald’s work has been cited in nearly 16,500 articles, according to the citation index. Articles that get attention vary from year to year. “Some years, it’s abiotic stress. Other years, it’s stress combination,” he said.

One of the papers that has maintained a fan base is a 2016 group project explaining how plants adjust to environmental stress by protecting their metabolism and maintaining energy reserves to detoxify a type of molecules called reactive oxygen species. 

For Buckley, this is the first time the index has named him a highly cited researcher. He is a professor and vice chair of the department. His research focuses on plant-water relationships. His published work has been cited in more than 5,800 articles.

Of Buckley’s many papers, one that has received much attention from fellow scientists is a 2005 review of how the balance between water in the soil and water demanded by the atmosphere affects how leaves’ stomata open and close, controlling the movement of water through the plant. 

Each researcher selected for the “highly cited” distinction has authored papers that rank in the top 1 percent for number of citations in their fields and publication year in the Web of Science over the previous decade, according to Clarivate.