Nature Neuroscience turns 10!

Our May editorial takes a brief look back at some of the history of Nature Neuroscience. We also present some of the most-cited papers over the past decade. This is an interesting exercise, as it provides an opportunity to reflect on the interests of both the authors and readers over the past decade.


As promised in the editorial, here is a list of most highly cited paper from each year of the journals publication, up until 2005 (going beyond that, things get a little unreliable since the citation half-life is usually quoted as being somewhere between 2-3 years):

1998: Nature Neuroscience 1, 69 – 73 (1998) ; doi:10.1038/271

Cortisol levels during human aging predict hippocampal atrophy and memory deficits

Sonia J. Lupien, Mony de Leon, Susan de Santi, Antonio Convit, Chaim Tarshish, N. P. V. Nair, Mira Thakur, Bruce S. McEwen, Richard L. Hauger & Michael J. Meaney

447 citations

1999: Nature Neuroscience 2, 266 – 270 (1999) ; doi:10.1038/6368

Running increases cell proliferation and neurogenesis in the adult mouse dentate gyrus

Henriette van Praag, Gerd Kempermann & Fred H. Gage

839 citations

2000: Nature Neuroscience 3, 1301 – 1306 (2000) ; doi:10.1038/81834

Chronic systemic pesticide exposure reproduces features of Parkinson’s disease

Ranjita Betarbet, Todd B. Sherer, Gillian MacKenzie, Monica Garcia-Osuna, Alexander V. Panov & J. Timothy Greenamyre

876 citations

2001: Nature Neuroscience 4, 95 – 102 (2001) ; doi:10.1038/82959

Abstract reward and punishment representations in the human orbitofrontal cortex

J. O’Doherty, M. L. Kringelbach, E. T. Rolls, J. Hornak & C. Andrews

454 citations

2002: Nature Neuroscience 5, 452 – 457 (2002) ; doi:10.1038/nn842

Immunization reverses memory deficits without reducing brain A burden in Alzheimer’s disease model

Jean-Cosme Dodart, Kelly R. Bales, Kimberley S. Gannon, Stephen J. Greene, Ronald B. DeMattos, Chantal Mathis, Cynthia A. DeLong, Su Wu, Xin Wu, David M. Holtzman & Steven M. Paul

317 citations

2003: Nature Neuroscience 6, 43 – 50 (2002) ; doi:10.1038/nn980

Neuron-to-astrocyte signaling is central to the dynamic control of brain microcirculation

Micaela Zonta, María Cecilia Angulo, Sara Gobbo, Bernhard Rosengarten, Konstantin-A. Hossmann, Tullio Pozzan & Giorgio Carmignoto

292 citations

2004: Nature Neuroscience 7, 847 – 854 (2004) ; doi:10.1038/nn1276

Epigenetic programming by maternal behavior

Ian C G Weaver, Nadia Cervoni, Frances A Champagne, Ana C D’Alessio, Shakti Sharma, Jonathan R Seckl, Sergiy Dymov, Moshe Szyf & Michael J Meaney

413 citations

2005: Nature Neuroscience 8, 828 – 834 (2005) ; doi:10.1038/nn1463

5-HTTLPR polymorphism impacts human cingulate-amygdala interactions: a genetic susceptibility mechanism for depression

Lukas Pezawas, Andreas Meyer-Lindenberg, Emily M Drabant, Beth A Verchinski, Karen E Munoz, Bhaskar S Kolachana, Michael F Egan, Venkata S Mattay, Ahmad R Hariri & Daniel R Weinberger

236 citations

And, the Top 10 overall:

1. 876 citations

Nature Neuroscience 3, 1301 – 1306 (2000) ; doi:10.1038/81834

Chronic systemic pesticide exposure reproduces features of Parkinson’s disease

Ranjita Betarbet, Todd B. Sherer, Gillian MacKenzie, Monica Garcia-Osuna, Alexander V. Panov & J. Timothy Greenamyre

2. 839 citations

Nature Neuroscience 2, 266 – 270 (1999) ; doi:10.1038/6368

Running increases cell proliferation and neurogenesis in the adult mouse dentate gyrus

Henriette van Praag, Gerd Kempermann & Fred H. Gage

3. 746 citations

Nature Neuroscience 2, 260 – 265 (1999) ; doi:10.1038/6365

Learning enhances adult neurogenesis in the hippocampal formation

Elizabeth Gould, Anna Beylin, Patima Tanapat, Alison Reeves & Tracey J. Shors

4. 595 citations

Nature Neuroscience 2, 861 – 863 (1999) ; doi:10.1038/13158

Brain development during childhood and adolescence: a longitudinal MRI study

Jay N. Giedd, Jonathan Blumenthal, Neal O. Jeffries, F. X. Castellanos, Hong Liu, Alex Zijdenbos, Tomá Paus, Alan C. Evans & Judith L. Rapoport

5. 509 citations

Nature Neuroscience 3, 661 – 669 (2000) ; doi:10.1038/76615

Proteomic analysis of NMDA receptor−adhesion protein signaling complexes

Holger Husi, Malcolm A. Ward, Jyoti S. Choudhary, Walter P. Blackstock & Seth G. N. Grant

6. 476 citations

Nature Neuroscience 3, 292 – 297 (2000) ; doi:10.1038/73009

Voluntary orienting is dissociated from target detection in human posterior parietal cortex

Maurizio Corbetta, J. Michelle Kincade, John M. Ollinger, Marc P. McAvoy & Gordon L. Shulman

7. 454 citations

Nature Neuroscience 4, 95 – 102 (2001) ; doi:10.1038/82959

Abstract reward and punishment representations in the human orbitofrontal cortex

J. O’Doherty, M. L. Kringelbach, 2, E. T. Rolls, J. Hornak & C. Andrews

8. 447 citations

Nature Neuroscience 1, 69 – 73 (1998) ; doi:10.1038/271

Cortisol levels during human aging predict hippocampal atrophy and memory deficits

Sonia J. Lupien, Mony de Leon, Susan de Santi, Antonio Convit, Chaim Tarshish, N. P. V. Nair, Mira Thakur, Bruce S. McEwen, Richard L. Hauger & Michael J. Meaney

9. 435 citations

Nature Neuroscience 3, 284 – 291 (2000) ; doi:10.1038/72999

The neural mechanisms of top-down attentional control

J. B. Hopfinger, M. H. Buonocore & G. R. Mangun

10. 413 citations

Nature Neuroscience 7, 847 – 854 (2004) ; doi:10.1038/nn1276

Epigenetic programming by maternal behavior

Ian C G Weaver, Nadia Cervoni, Frances A Champagne, Ana C D’Alessio, Shakti Sharma, Jonathan R Seckl, Sergiy Dymov, Moshe Szyf & Michael J Meaney

An interesting list that spans quite a few sub-disciplines, hopefully reflecting our attempt at balance when covering all fields for our broad readership. What interesting trends do you see? Any interesting developments that you find surprising or completely expected? I look forward to reading your analysis.

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