Dr. Joseph Wang, director of the Center for Bioelectronics and Biosensors in the Biodesign Institute at ASU, has recently joined the elite ranks of researcher citations. Wang was the top ranked researcher in the field of engineering (out of 5537 authors) and the seventh most cited in chemistry (out of a total of 5,977 authors) for research papers published over the last decade. The data was gathered from the Institute for Scientific Information’s (ISI) Essential Science Indicators from 1995-2005. The latest rankings are indicative of a prolific publication career for Wang, who also received a special ISI Citation Laureate for his performance from 1991-2001 and was given an award in 1996 as the most cited electrochemist. 
Research sheds new light on protein behavior
Proteins play an essential role in virtually every cellular process. They provide actin and myosin for muscles, form the cytoskeleton that maintains a cell’s shape, and carry out innumerable duties critical for immune response, cell signaling and other central functions. A better understanding of protein complexity would be a significant advance in life sciences research, particularly for the study of the mechanisms underlying disease.
Now, Dr. Sidney Hecht and his colleagues are pioneering new techniques to peer into the inner workings of proteins, hoping to learn how they perform their impressive feats. Hecht is a professor of chemistry and director of the Center for BioEnergetics at the Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University. The group’s efforts may pave the way for more effective therapeutics for a host of major illnesses, among other advances.