CMB Helps UK Earn No. 2 National Ranking for ‘Skeletal Muscle’ Citations and Research
By Ryan Clark
CHS Communications Director
In late spring, it was announced that the University of Kentucky had earned a No. 2 ranking as an Academic Center for citations and research output in the field of ‘skeletal muscle,’ largely due to the success of the Center for Muscle Biology in the College of Health Sciences.
Likewise, Chris Fry, PhD (No. 5) and Charlotte A. Peterson, PhD (No. 10), were ranked in the top 10 for individual researchers under the ‘skeletal muscle’ topic 1.
Both were designated as Highly Ranked Scholars, which — according to the site — identifies them as “the most productive (in number of publications) authors whose works are of profound impact (citations) and of utmost quality.”
The data used to identify the Highly Ranked Scholars was “based on lifetime or prior five-year activity, weighting each publication and citation by the number of authors, and excluding self-citations,” the site described. “All scholars — including inactive, deceased and retired scholars — are included.”
Fry had a publication count of 171, with 9,651 predicted citations, while Peterson had a count of 185 and 12,100 citations.
“The recognition is great — I feel CHS and the Center for Muscle Biology have contributed top-notch research for well over a decade now, and seeing the metrics to substantiate my opinions is fantastic,” said Fry, Associate Director of the Center for Muscle Biology. “It is always a great feeling knowing your work is being cited strongly by your peers; it validates the research you are performing and continues to light a fire under us to continue performing at a high level.”
Peterson, who is Professor Emeritus in the Department of Physical Therapy and member of the Center for Muscle Biology, agreed.
“It is very gratifying that our work is having an impact and is of interest to other scientists in the field,” she said. “What I am even more proud of is that I was recently awarded the Mentorship Award from the American Aging Association at their annual meeting. Several of my current and former mentees attended the meeting, as they continue to do research, and many have their own labs now. It was an opportunity for me to thank them for all their hard work as they are largely responsible for the success of my research program.”
Enabled by the generation of over 30 million detailed scholar profiles based on unique ScholarGPS® classification of over 200 million scholarly publications of record into one of over 350,000 distinct Specialties, 177 Disciplines, and 14 Fields, Highly Ranked Scholars™ are, for the first time, identified within each Specialty, Discipline, Field, and all Fields. Highly Ranked Scholars™ are those with ScholarGPS® Ranks of 0.05 percent or better.
“On a Center level, there are a number of ‘muscle biology centers’ that have cropped up across the country over the last decade, and it is nice to see that the UK CMB is not only competitive, but leading from a citation standpoint,” Fry said. “This serves as strong motivation for all the researchers involved with the CMB across both CHS and other colleges.”
Scott Lephart, PhD and Dean of the College of Health Sciences, noted that the recognition illustrates the hard work and effort put forth from all the faculty, staff and students.
“Congratulations to all those in the Center for Muscle Biology for being honored in these latest rankings,” said Scott Lephart, PhD and Dean of the College of Health Sciences. “While we continue to help serve our University, Commonwealth and region, we are developing a national reputation for excellence, one that will only help continue our efforts to transform the state of Kentucky for the better.
“Again, congratulations to all on this well-deserved honor.”