World's Best Scientists 2026 revealed!
Award Badge
Medicine
UK
2026
Award Badge
Genetics
UK
2024

D-Index & Metrics

Genetics

D-Index
156
Citations
126937
World Ranking
112
National Ranking
19

Medicine

D-Index
156
Citations
128117
World Ranking
899
National Ranking
93

Research.com Recognitions

  • 2026 - Research.com Medicine in United Kingdom Leader Award
  • 2025 - Research.com Medicine in United Kingdom Leader Award
  • 2024 - Research.com Genetics in United Kingdom Leader Award
  • 2024 - Research.com Genetics and Molecular Biology in United Kingdom Leader Award
  • 2023 - Research.com Genetics in United Kingdom Leader Award
  • 2017 - Fellow of the Royal Society, United Kingdom

Overview

Hugh Watkins is affiliated with the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Their research primarily focuses on cardiology and cardiovascular medicine, biochemistry, genetics, and molecular biology. Their work spans several subfields including cardiology and cardiovascular medicine, molecular biology, genetics, epidemiology, and surgery.

The major topics covered in their research include:

  • Cardiomyopathy and myosin studies
  • Cardiovascular function and risk factors
  • Congenital heart defects research
  • Genetic associations and epidemiology
  • Cardiovascular effects of exercise
  • Viral infections and immunology research
  • Genomics and rare diseases

Watkins has published extensively in several prominent scientific venues. Frequent publication venues include:

  • JAMA Cardiology
  • bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
  • Journal of the American College of Cardiology
  • European Heart Journal
  • Circulation

Collaboration is a key component of Watkins's research, working regularly with coauthors such as:

  • Stefan Neubauer
  • Anuj Goel
  • Betty Raman
  • Martin S. Maron
  • Iacopo Olivotto

Among representative publications in recent years are:

  • Discovery and systematic characterization of risk variants and genes for coronary artery disease in over a million participants, 2022, Nature Genetics
  • Whole-genome sequencing of patients with rare diseases in a national health system, 2020, Nature
  • Common genetic variants and modifiable risk factors underpin hypertrophic cardiomyopathy susceptibility and expressivity, 2021, Nature Genetics
  • Myosin Sequestration Regulates Sarcomere Function, Cardiomyocyte Energetics, and Metabolism, Informing the Pathogenesis of Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy, 2020, Circulation
  • Shared genetic pathways contribute to risk of hypertrophic and dilated cardiomyopathies with opposite directions of effect, 2021, Nature Genetics

The scope of Watkins's work integrates genetic, epidemiological, and molecular aspects of cardiovascular medicine. This multidisciplinary approach is evident in the focus on both common and rare cardiovascular diseases and the underlying molecular mechanisms.

Watkins was recognized as a Fellow of the Royal Society, United Kingdom, in 2017.

Best Publications

  • Analysis of protein-coding genetic variation in 60,706 humans

    Monkol Lek;Konrad J. Karczewski;Konrad J. Karczewski;Eric V. Minikel;Eric V. Minikel;Kaitlin E. Samocha

  • 2014 ESC Guidelines on diagnosis and management of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy The Task Force for the Diagnosis and Management of Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC)

    Perry M Elliott;Aris Anastasakis

  • Association analyses of 249,796 individuals reveal 18 new loci associated with body mass index

    Elizabeth K. Speliotes;Elizabeth K. Speliotes;Cristen J. Willer;Sonja I. Berndt;Keri L. Monda

  • 2014 ESC Guidelines on diagnosis and management of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy

    Perry M. Elliott;Aris Anastasakis;Michael A. Borger;Martin Borggrefe

  • New genetic loci implicated in fasting glucose homeostasis and their impact on type 2 diabetes risk

    Josée Dupuis;Josée Dupuis;Claudia Langenberg;Inga Prokopenko;Richa Saxena;Richa Saxena

  • Plasma HDL cholesterol and risk of myocardial infarction: A mendelian randomisation study

    Benjamin F. Voight;Benjamin F. Voight;Benjamin F. Voight;Gina M. Peloso;Gina M. Peloso;Marju Orho-Melander;Ruth Frikke-Schmidt

  • A comprehensive 1000 Genomes–based genome-wide association meta-analysis of coronary artery disease

    M Nikpay;A Goel;Won H-H.;L M Hall

  • Hundreds of variants clustered in genomic loci and biological pathways affect human height

    Hana Lango Allen;Karol Estrada;Guillaume Lettre;Sonja I. Berndt

  • Genetic variants in novel pathways influence blood pressure and cardiovascular disease risk

    Georg B. Ehret;Georg B. Ehret;Georg B. Ehret;Patricia B. Munroe;Kenneth M. Rice;Murielle Bochud

  • Defining the role of common variation in the genomic and biological architecture of adult human height

    Andrew R. Wood;Tonu Esko;Jian Yang;Sailaja Vedantam

  • New genetic loci implicated in fasting glucose homeostasis and their impact on type 2 diabetes risk (vol 42, pg 105, 2010)

    J Dupuis;C Langenberg;I Prokopenko;R Saxena

  • HRS/EHRA Expert Consensus Statement on the State of Genetic Testing for the Channelopathies and Cardiomyopathies: This document was developed as a partnership between the Heart Rhythm Society (HRS) and the European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA)

    Michael J. Ackerman;Silvia G. Priori;Stephan Willems;Charles Berul

  • Genetic Variants Associated with Lp(a) Lipoprotein Level and Coronary Disease

    R Clarke;J F Peden;J C Hopewell;T Kyriakou

  • A genome-wide association search for type 2 diabetes genes in African Americans.

    N D Palmer;C W McDonough;P J Hicks;B H Roh

  • Large-scale association analysis identifies new risk loci for coronary artery disease

    Panos Deloukas;Stavroula Kanoni;Christina Willenborg;Martin Farrall

  • Genetic studies of body mass index yield new insights for obesity biology

    Adam E. Locke;Bratati Kahali;Sonja I. Berndt;Anne E. Justice

  • Alpha-tropomyosin and cardiac troponin T mutations cause familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy: a disease of the sarcomere.

    Ludwig Thierfelder;Ludwig Thierfelder;Hugh Watkins;Hugh Watkins;Calum MacRae;Calum MacRae;Roger Lamas

  • A comprehensive 1000 Genomes-based genome-wide association meta-analysis of coronary artery disease

    Majid Nikpay;Anuj Goel;Hong-Hee Won;Leanne M. Hall

  • Erratum: New genetic loci implicated in fasting glucose homeostasis and their impact on type 2 diabetes risk (Nature Genetics (2010) 42 (105-116))

    Josée Dupuis;Claudia Langenberg;Inga Prokopenko;Richa Saxena

  • Hundreds of variants clustered in genomic loci and biological pathways affect human height

    H. Lango Allen;K. Estrada;G. Lettre;S. I. Berndt

Frequent Co-Authors

Martin Farrall
Martin Farrall University of Oxford
Nilesh J. Samani
Nilesh J. Samani University of Leicester
Anuj Goel
Anuj Goel University of Oxford
Anders Hamsten
Anders Hamsten Karolinska Institute
Sekar Kathiresan
Sekar Kathiresan Harvard University
Stefan Neubauer
Stefan Neubauer University of Oxford
Jaspal S. Kooner
Jaspal S. Kooner Imperial College London
John Danesh
John Danesh University of Cambridge
Bruce M. Psaty
Bruce M. Psaty University of Washington
Albert Hofman
Albert Hofman Harvard University

If you think any of the details on this page are incorrect, let us know.

Report an issue

We appreciate your kind effort to assist us to improve this page, it would be helpful providing us with as much detail as possible in the text box below:

Related Online Degrees & Career Pathways

As the field of genetics continues to grow, many students are exploring related healthcare degrees that offer strong career prospects. Some of the most popular options include nursing programs, which offer flexible learning through online study.

For those seeking to advance quickly, affordable online nursing programs make it possible to earn a degree while balancing work or family commitments. If you’re already a registered nurse and want to upgrade your qualifications, cheap rn to bsn programs provide a cost-effective pathway to leadership roles.

Career advancement in advanced practice and specialized roles is also possible with an online nurse practitioner program. For those aiming for the highest levels of clinical expertise, the cheapest dnp online programs can help you achieve your goals while minimizing costs.

Exploring these related online degrees allows students of genetics to diversify their skills, expand their career options, and enter growing healthcare sectors with strong job security and demand.

Best Scientists Citing Hugh Watkins

Trending Scientists