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Chemistry
USA
2026

D-Index & Metrics

Discipline name D-Index World Ranking Current World Ranking National Ranking Current National Ranking Publications Citations
Chemistry 160 94 80 49 36 1194 106256

K. C. Nicolaou publications per year

The chart shows the history of publications by K. C. Nicolaou between 1970 and 2024, highlighting the no. of papers published in each year and offering an overview of the publication velocity of this scholar. K. C. Nicolaou published across 55 years, from 1970 to 2024, averaging 22.6 papers a year. Output peaked at 58 publications in 1999. 1 of the 1,242 publications appeared in the last two years.

No. of publications
10 20 30 40 50
Bar chart. Horizontal axis: year, 1970 to 2024. Vertical axis: number of publications, 0 to 58. Peak 58 publications in 1999. 1970: 2 publications 1971: 1 publication 1972: 2 publications 1973: 4 publications 1974: 4 publications 1975: 10 publications 1976: 3 publications 1977: 10 publications 1978: 28 publications 1979: 29 publications 1980: 17 publications 1981: 19 publications 1982: 11 publications 1983: 6 publications 1984: 17 publications 1985: 17 publications 1986: 21 publications 1987: 18 publications 1988: 25 publications 1989: 29 publications 1990: 24 publications 1991: 25 publications 1992: 34 publications 1993: 44 publications 1994: 46 publications 1995: 42 publications 1996: 34 publications 1997: 49 publications 1998: 52 publications 1999: 58 publications 2000: 43 publications 2001: 46 publications 2002: 53 publications 2003: 30 publications 2004: 31 publications 2005: 38 publications 2006: 38 publications 2007: 37 publications 2008: 35 publications 2009: 45 publications 2010: 29 publications 2011: 20 publications 2012: 18 publications 2013: 11 publications 2014: 15 publications 2015: 9 publications 2016: 14 publications 2017: 12 publications 2018: 9 publications 2019: 10 publications 2020: 7 publications 2021: 8 publications 2022: 2 publications 2023: 0 publications 2024: 1 publication
1970 2024

1,242 publications in total across all disciplines

View publications per year as a table
K. C. Nicolaou: publications per year, 1970 to 2024
Year Publications
1970 2
1971 1
1972 2
1973 4
1974 4
1975 10
1976 3
1977 10
1978 28
1979 29
1980 17
1981 19
1982 11
1983 6
1984 17
1985 17
1986 21
1987 18
1988 25
1989 29
1990 24
1991 25
1992 34
1993 44
1994 46
1995 42
1996 34
1997 49
1998 52
1999 58
2000 43
2001 46
2002 53
2003 30
2004 31
2005 38
2006 38
2007 37
2008 35
2009 45
2010 29
2011 20
2012 18
2013 11
2014 15
2015 9
2016 14
2017 12
2018 9
2019 10
2020 7
2021 8
2022 2
2023 0
2024 1
Total 1,242
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K. C. Nicolaou publications per year - data summary

  • K. C. Nicolaou, a Chemistry scholar from Rice University, has 1,242 publications recorded across 55 years, from 1970 to 2024.
  • The oldest publication on record dates to 1970 and the most recent to 2024.
  • The most productive year is 1999, with 58 publications.
  • The least productive years with any output are 1971 and 2024, with 1 publication each.
  • 1 of the 55 years in the span carries no publications at all (2023).
  • The rate of publication averages 22.6 papers per year over the whole span, or 23.0 per year counting only the 54 years with at least one publication.
  • The last 5 years on the chart (2020-2024) hold 18 publications, 1% of the career total.
  • Split into equal eras - 1970-1988: 244 publications (12.8 per year); 1989-2007: 753 publications (39.6 per year); 2008-2024: 245 publications (14.4 per year).
  • Comparing the opening and closing eras, the overall trend of publication is broadly steady.

K. C. Nicolaou publication distribution in Chemistry in 2026

The chart shows the distribution of publications by all Research.com ranked scientists in the field of Chemistry in 2026. The highlighted bar marks where K. C. Nicolaou sits on this spectrum.

No. of scientists
250 500 750 1,000 1,250
Bar chart with 63 bars. Horizontal axis: publications, 61–80 to 1,295+. Vertical axis: number of scientists, 0 to 1,350. Most scientists, 1,350, have 161–180 publications. The last bar groups every scientist with 1,295 publications or more. The highlighted bar, 1,181–1,200 publications, is where this scientist sits. 61–80 publications: 66 scientists 81–100 publications: 302 scientists 101–120 publications: 623 scientists 121–140 publications: 918 scientists 141–160 publications: 1,218 scientists 161–180 publications: 1,350 scientists 181–200 publications: 1,344 scientists 201–220 publications: 1,281 scientists 221–240 publications: 1,216 scientists 241–260 publications: 1,100 scientists 261–280 publications: 979 scientists 281–300 publications: 939 scientists 301–320 publications: 764 scientists 321–340 publications: 643 scientists 341–360 publications: 628 scientists 361–380 publications: 522 scientists 381–400 publications: 459 scientists 401–420 publications: 397 scientists 421–440 publications: 327 scientists 441–460 publications: 270 scientists 461–480 publications: 265 scientists 481–500 publications: 252 scientists 501–520 publications: 201 scientists 521–540 publications: 185 scientists 541–560 publications: 148 scientists 561–580 publications: 148 scientists 581–600 publications: 132 scientists 601–620 publications: 114 scientists 621–640 publications: 104 scientists 641–660 publications: 91 scientists 661–680 publications: 92 scientists 681–700 publications: 73 scientists 701–720 publications: 57 scientists 721–740 publications: 54 scientists 741–760 publications: 67 scientists 761–780 publications: 45 scientists 781–800 publications: 46 scientists 801–820 publications: 39 scientists 821–840 publications: 32 scientists 841–860 publications: 36 scientists 861–880 publications: 29 scientists 881–900 publications: 26 scientists 901–920 publications: 24 scientists 921–940 publications: 14 scientists 941–960 publications: 23 scientists 961–980 publications: 28 scientists 981–1,000 publications: 15 scientists 1,001–1,020 publications: 29 scientists 1,021–1,040 publications: 12 scientists 1,041–1,060 publications: 19 scientists 1,061–1,080 publications: 12 scientists 1,081–1,100 publications: 6 scientists 1,101–1,120 publications: 8 scientists 1,121–1,140 publications: 12 scientists 1,141–1,160 publications: 5 scientists 1,161–1,180 publications: 6 scientists 1,181–1,200 publications: 14 scientists 1,201–1,220 publications: 7 scientists 1,221–1,240 publications: 2 scientists 1,241–1,260 publications: 6 scientists 1,261–1,280 publications: 4 scientists 1,281–1,294 publications: 6 scientists 1,295+ publications: 100 scientists
61–80 publications 1,295+

This scientist: 1,194 publications — 99th percentile

99% of scientists in this discipline score the same or lower.

The last bar groups every scientist with 1,295 publications or more.

View publications distribution as a table
Number of Chemistry scientists by publication count, Research.com 2026 ranking edition. Based on 17,934 ranked scientists.
Publications Scientists This scientist
61–80 66
81–100 302
101–120 623
121–140 918
141–160 1,218
161–180 1,350
181–200 1,344
201–220 1,281
221–240 1,216
241–260 1,100
261–280 979
281–300 939
301–320 764
321–340 643
341–360 628
361–380 522
381–400 459
401–420 397
421–440 327
441–460 270
461–480 265
481–500 252
501–520 201
521–540 185
541–560 148
561–580 148
581–600 132
601–620 114
621–640 104
641–660 91
661–680 92
681–700 73
701–720 57
721–740 54
741–760 67
761–780 45
781–800 46
801–820 39
821–840 32
841–860 36
861–880 29
881–900 26
901–920 24
921–940 14
941–960 23
961–980 28
981–1,000 15
1,001–1,020 29
1,021–1,040 12
1,041–1,060 19
1,061–1,080 12
1,081–1,100 6
1,101–1,120 8
1,121–1,140 12
1,141–1,160 5
1,161–1,180 6
1,181–1,200 14 1,194
1,201–1,220 7
1,221–1,240 2
1,241–1,260 6
1,261–1,280 4
1,281–1,294 6
1,295+ 100
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K. C. Nicolaou publication distribution in Chemistry in 2026 - data summary

  • The chart plots the publication count of all 17,934 Chemistry scientists ranked by Research.com in 2026, grouped into 63 ranges running from 61–80 to 1,295+ publications.
  • K. C. Nicolaou, a Chemistry scholar from Rice University, records 1,194 publications - the 99th percentile of the discipline.
  • 99% of ranked Chemistry scientists score the same or lower than K. C. Nicolaou, and about 1% score higher.
  • The median of the discipline falls in the 241–260 publications range, and K. C. Nicolaou ranks above the median.
  • The most crowded range is 161–180 publications, holding 1,350 scientists (8% of the field).
  • 77% of the field sits in the lowest quarter of the value range (up to 361–380 publications), so the distribution is heavily right-skewed and high scores are rare.
  • The final bar has no upper bound: it groups every scientist with 1,295 publications or more, 100 scientists in all (<1% of the field).

K. C. Nicolaou D-index placement in Chemistry in 2026

The chart shows the D-index (discipline H-index) distribution of Chemistry scientists ranked by Research.com in 2026. The highlighted bar marks where K. C. Nicolaou sits on this spectrum.

No. of scientists
250 500 750 1,000
Bar chart with 61 bars. Horizontal axis: D-Index, 40–41 to 159+. Vertical axis: number of scientists, 0 to 1,051. Most scientists, 1,051, have 56–57 D-Index. The last bar groups every scientist with 159 D-Index or more. The highlighted bar, 159+ D-Index, is where this scientist sits. 40–41 D-Index: 289 scientists 42–43 D-Index: 612 scientists 44–45 D-Index: 808 scientists 46–47 D-Index: 776 scientists 48–49 D-Index: 835 scientists 50–51 D-Index: 861 scientists 52–53 D-Index: 872 scientists 54–55 D-Index: 933 scientists 56–57 D-Index: 1,051 scientists 58–59 D-Index: 930 scientists 60–61 D-Index: 882 scientists 62–63 D-Index: 834 scientists 64–65 D-Index: 731 scientists 66–67 D-Index: 775 scientists 68–69 D-Index: 683 scientists 70–71 D-Index: 646 scientists 72–73 D-Index: 561 scientists 74–75 D-Index: 501 scientists 76–77 D-Index: 437 scientists 78–79 D-Index: 388 scientists 80–81 D-Index: 354 scientists 82–83 D-Index: 292 scientists 84–85 D-Index: 275 scientists 86–87 D-Index: 254 scientists 88–89 D-Index: 235 scientists 90–91 D-Index: 185 scientists 92–93 D-Index: 192 scientists 94–95 D-Index: 155 scientists 96–97 D-Index: 163 scientists 98–99 D-Index: 125 scientists 100–101 D-Index: 105 scientists 102–103 D-Index: 105 scientists 104–105 D-Index: 112 scientists 106–107 D-Index: 88 scientists 108–109 D-Index: 68 scientists 110–111 D-Index: 69 scientists 112–113 D-Index: 65 scientists 114–115 D-Index: 79 scientists 116–117 D-Index: 61 scientists 118–119 D-Index: 44 scientists 120–121 D-Index: 37 scientists 122–123 D-Index: 40 scientists 124–125 D-Index: 33 scientists 126–127 D-Index: 26 scientists 128–129 D-Index: 34 scientists 130–131 D-Index: 35 scientists 132–133 D-Index: 25 scientists 134–135 D-Index: 27 scientists 136–137 D-Index: 17 scientists 138–139 D-Index: 16 scientists 140–141 D-Index: 20 scientists 142–143 D-Index: 20 scientists 144–145 D-Index: 15 scientists 146–147 D-Index: 9 scientists 148–149 D-Index: 9 scientists 150–151 D-Index: 16 scientists 152–153 D-Index: 11 scientists 154–155 D-Index: 9 scientists 156–157 D-Index: 3 scientists 158 D-Index: 3 scientists 159+ D-Index: 98 scientists
40–41 D-Index 159+

This scientist: 160 D-Index — 99th percentile

99% of scientists in this discipline score the same or lower.

The last bar groups every scientist with 159 D-Index or more.

View D-Index distribution as a table
Number of Chemistry scientists by D-index, Research.com 2026 ranking edition. Based on 17,934 ranked scientists.
D-Index Scientists This scientist
40–41 289
42–43 612
44–45 808
46–47 776
48–49 835
50–51 861
52–53 872
54–55 933
56–57 1,051
58–59 930
60–61 882
62–63 834
64–65 731
66–67 775
68–69 683
70–71 646
72–73 561
74–75 501
76–77 437
78–79 388
80–81 354
82–83 292
84–85 275
86–87 254
88–89 235
90–91 185
92–93 192
94–95 155
96–97 163
98–99 125
100–101 105
102–103 105
104–105 112
106–107 88
108–109 68
110–111 69
112–113 65
114–115 79
116–117 61
118–119 44
120–121 37
122–123 40
124–125 33
126–127 26
128–129 34
130–131 35
132–133 25
134–135 27
136–137 17
138–139 16
140–141 20
142–143 20
144–145 15
146–147 9
148–149 9
150–151 16
152–153 11
154–155 9
156–157 3
158 3
159+ 98 160
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K. C. Nicolaou D-index placement in Chemistry in 2026 - data summary

  • The chart plots the discipline H-index (D-index) of all 17,934 Chemistry scientists ranked by Research.com in 2026, grouped into 61 ranges running from 40–41 to 159+ D-Index.
  • K. C. Nicolaou, a Chemistry scholar from Rice University, records 160 D-Index - the 99th percentile of the discipline.
  • 99% of ranked Chemistry scientists score the same or lower than K. C. Nicolaou, and about 1% score higher.
  • The median of the discipline falls in the 62–63 D-Index range, and K. C. Nicolaou ranks above the median.
  • The most crowded range is 56–57 D-Index, holding 1,051 scientists (6% of the field).
  • 70% of the field sits in the lowest quarter of the value range (up to 70–71 D-Index), so the distribution is heavily right-skewed and high scores are rare.
  • The final bar has no upper bound: it groups every scientist with 159 D-Index or more, 98 scientists in all (<1% of the field).

Research.com Recognitions

  • 2026 - Research.com Chemistry in United States Leader Award
  • 2025 - Research.com Chemistry in United States Leader Award
  • 2016 - Wolf Prize in Chemistry, Wolf Foundation for advancing the field of chemical synthesis to the extremes of molecular complexity, linking structure and function and expanding our dominion over the interface of chemistry, biology and medicine.
  • 2015 - Fellow, National Academy of Inventors
  • 2013 - Fellow of the Royal Society, United Kingdom
  • 2011 - Benjamin Franklin Medal, Franklin Institute
  • 2009 - German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina - Deutsche Akademie der Naturforscher Leopoldina – Nationale Akademie der Wissenschaften Chemistry
  • 2005 - Arthur C. Cope Award, American Chemical Society (ACS)
  • 2002 - Tetrahedron Prize for Creativity in Organic Chemistry or Bioorganic and Medicinal Chemistry, Elsevier
  • 2001 - Centenary Prize, Royal Society of Chemistry (UK)
  • 2000 - Paul Karrer Gold Medal, University of Zurich
  • 1999 - Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
  • 1996 - Member of the National Academy of Sciences
  • 1996 - William H. Nichols Medal, American Chemical Society (ACS)
  • 1996 - Linus Pauling Award, American Chemical Society (ACS)
  • 1996 - Ernest Guenther Award, American Chemical Society (ACS)
  • 1993 - Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
  • 1983 - Fellow of John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
  • 1979 - Fellow of Alfred P. Sloan Foundation

Overview

K. C. Nicolaou is affiliated with Rice University in the United States and has contributed extensively to the fields of Chemistry, Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology, and Materials Science. Their research spans subfields including Organic Chemistry, Materials Chemistry, Molecular Biology, Pharmacology, and Oncology.

The main topics of their work cover Synthetic Organic Chemistry Methods, Crystallization and Solubility Studies, X-ray Diffraction in Crystallography, Chemical Synthesis and Analysis, Microbial Natural Products and Biosynthesis, Cyclization and Aryne Chemistry, and Traditional and Medicinal Uses of Annonaceae.

Frequent coauthors collaborating with Nicolaou include Joseph Sandoval, Monette Aujay, Julia Gavrilyuk, Christine Gu, and Mikhail Hammond.

Nicolaou's publications have appeared notably in venues such as:

  • Journal of the American Chemical Society
  • The Cambridge Structural Database
  • The Journal of Organic Chemistry
  • Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
  • Natural Product Reports

Selected recent papers authored by Nicolaou include:

  • "Perspectives from nearly five decades of total synthesis of natural products and their analogues for biology and medicine," 2020, Natural Product Reports
  • "Total Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of Tiancimycins A and B, Yangpumicin A, and Related Anthraquinone-Fused Enediyne Antitumor Antibiotics," 2020, Journal of the American Chemical Society
  • "Uncialamycin-based antibody-drug conjugates: Unique enediyne ADCs exhibiting bystander killing effect," 2021, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
  • "A Reverse Approach to the Total Synthesis of Halichondrin B," 2021, Journal of the American Chemical Society
  • "Total Synthesis of the Monomeric Unit of Lomaiviticin A," 2020, Journal of the American Chemical Society

Among the awards received by Nicolaou are the Wolf Prize in Chemistry from the Wolf Foundation in 2016 for advancing chemical synthesis at the interface of chemistry, biology, and medicine, fellowships with the National Academy of Inventors (2015), Royal Society of the United Kingdom (2013), and the American Association for the Advancement of Science (1999), as well as multiple American Chemical Society honors such as the Arthur C. Cope Award (2005), Ernest Guenther Award (1996), Linus Pauling Award (1996), and William H. Nichols Medal (1996).

Additional recognition includes the Benjamin Franklin Medal from the Franklin Institute (2011), membership in the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina (2009), fellowship with the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (1993), and early career fellowships from the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation (1983) and Alfred P. Sloan Foundation (1979).

Best Publications

  • Palladium-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions in total synthesis.

    K. C. Nicolaou;Paul G. Bulger;Paul G. Bulger;David Sarlah;David Sarlah

  • The Diels--Alder reaction in total synthesis.

    K. C. Nicolaou;Scott A. Snyder;Tamsyn Montagnon;Georgios Vassilikogiannakis

  • Cascade reactions in total synthesis.

    K. C. Nicolaou;David J. Edmonds;David J. Edmonds;Paul G. Bulger;Paul G. Bulger

  • Classics in total synthesis : targets, strategies, methods

    K. C. Nicolaou;E. J. Sorensen;E. J. Corey;Scott A. Snyder

  • Total synthesis of taxol

    K. C. Nicolaou;K. C. Nicolaou;Z. Yang;J. J. Liu;H. Ueno

  • Metathesis Reactions in Total Synthesis

    K. C. Nicolaou;K. C. Nicolaou;Paul G. Bulger;Paul G. Bulger;David Sarlah;David Sarlah

  • Chemistry and Biology of the Enediyne Anticancer Antibiotics

    KC Nicolaou;Wei Min Dai

  • Chemistry, Biology, and Medicine of the Glycopeptide Antibiotics.

    K. C. Nicolaou;Christopher N. C. Boddy;Stefan Bräse;Nicolas Charles Winssinger

  • Natural Product-like Combinatorial Libraries Based on Privileged Structures. 1. General Principles and Solid-Phase Synthesis of Benzopyrans

    K. C. Nicolaou;J. A. Pfefferkorn;A. J. Roecker;G.-Q. Cao

  • The Art and Science of Total Synthesis at the Dawn of the Twenty-First Century

    K. C. Nicolaou;Dionisios Vourloumis;Nicolas Charles Winssinger;Phil S. Baran

  • Chemistry and Biology of Taxol

    Kyriacos Costa Nicolaou;Kyriacos Costa Nicolaou;Wei-Min Dai;Rodney Kiplin Guy

  • Palladiumkatalysierte Kreuzkupplungen in der Totalsynthese

    K. C. Nicolaou;K. C. Nicolaou;Paul G. Bulger;Paul G. Bulger;David Sarlah;David Sarlah

  • The art of total synthesis through cascade reactions.

    K. C. Nicolaou;Jason S. Chen

  • The Chemistry and Biology of Alkannin, Shikonin, and Related Naphthazarin Natural Products.

    Vassilios P. Papageorgiou;Andreana N. Assimopoulou;Elias A. Couladouros;David Hepworth

  • Kaskadenreaktionen in der Totalsynthese

    K. C. Nicolaou;K. C. Nicolaou;David J. Edmonds;David J. Edmonds;Paul G. Bulger;Paul G. Bulger

  • Efficient and mild lactonization method for the synthesis of macrolides

    E. J. Corey;Kyriacos C. Nicolaou

  • Chasing molecules that were never there: misassigned natural products and the role of chemical synthesis in modern structure elucidation.

    K. C. Nicolaou;K. C. Nicolaou;Scott A. Snyder;Scott A. Snyder

  • Iodine(V) Reagents in Organic Synthesis. Part 4. o-Iodoxybenzoic Acid as a Chemospecific Tool for Single Electron Transfer-Based Oxidation Processes

    Nicolaou Kc;Montagnon T;Baran Ps;Zhong Yl

  • Classics in total synthesis

    K. C. Nicolaou

  • Aldehyde Dehydrogenase Inhibitors: a Comprehensive Review of the Pharmacology, Mechanism of Action, Substrate Specificity, and Clinical Application

    Vindhya Koppaka;David C. Thompson;Ying Chen;Manuel Ellermann

  • A common pharmacophore for epothilone and taxanes: Molecular basis for drug resistance conferred by tubulin mutations in human cancer cells

    Paraskevi Giannakakou;Rick Gussio;Eva Nogales;Kenneth H. Downing

Frequent Co-Authors

Dionisios Vourloumis
Dionisios Vourloumis Demokritos National Centre for Scientific Research
Phil S. Baran
Phil S. Baran Scripps Research Institute
Yun He
Yun He Chongqing University
Zhen Yang
Zhen Yang Peking University
Scott A. Snyder
Scott A. Snyder University of Chicago
Nicolas Winssinger
Nicolas Winssinger University of Geneva
Jeffrey A. Pfefferkorn
Jeffrey A. Pfefferkorn Pfizer (United States)
Takashi Ohshima
Takashi Ohshima Kyushu University
E. J. Corey
E. J. Corey Harvard University
Allan M. Lefer
Allan M. Lefer Thomas Jefferson University

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