22
September
2021
|
15:09
Asia/Singapore

Prof Barry Halliwell honoured as a 2021 Citation Laureate

Professor Barry Halliwell, Senior Advisor (Academic Appointments and Research Excellence), NUS Office of the Senior Deputy President and Provost, has been conferred Citation Laureate for 2021. The distinction is awarded by information and insights company Clarivate to researchers whose work has been deemed to be of “Nobel Class” as they are among the most highly cited and influential, even transformative, in their fields.

Prof Halliwell, who is also Distinguished Professor at NUS Biochemistry, was one of only three named in the category of Chemistry. He was cited for pioneering research in free-radical chemistry, including the role of free radicals and antioxidants in human disease. His interest in identifying the most important antioxidants in the human diet, and in developing novel antioxidants, has critical bearing on treating human diseases, and understanding how diet might cause or prevent them. His current work focuses on novel agents to prevent and treat dementia.

“I am very honoured to receive this recognition on the impact of my 20 plus years of work at NUS. I am particularly proud to receive it for Chemistry, since a fundamental grasp of the chemistry of free radicals and antioxidants is essential to understanding their role in food, nutrition, human health and diseases,” said Prof Halliwell. He is also the Chair of the Biomedical Advisory Council, Agency for Science, Technology and Research.

Prof Halliwell is one of 16 scientists around the world listed in the Hall of Citation Laureates this year. In 2019, Professor Artur Ekert of the Centre for Quantum Technologies and Department of Physics at NUS was honoured as a Citation Laureate for his contributions to quantum computation and quantum cryptography.

Citation Laureate candidates are selected from authors of the 0.01 per cent of some 52 million articles and proceedings that have been cited 2,000 times or more. As Nobel Prizes in scientific disciplines are awarded to researchers who have exceptionally high impacts on their fields, such citation rates are often good leading indicators of future winners. Since the creation of Citation Laureates in 2002, 59 of them have gone on to receive a Nobel Prize.

Mr Joel Haspel, Senior Vice President, Strategy, Science Group at Clarivate said, “This year’s Citation Laureates have pioneered some of the most important research of our time, accelerating our understanding of subjects as varied as free radicals, virus identification and financial crises. It is because of their foundational work that the pace of innovation in drug development, economic theory and entrepreneurship can continue to progress. We are delighted to recognise and celebrate their enormous achievements, demonstrating that their citation records reflect their influence on their colleagues, research fields and society as a whole.”