World's Best Scientists 2026 revealed!
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Best Female Scientists
2025

D-Index & Metrics

Best Female Scientists

D-Index
115
Citations
72380
World Ranking
698
National Ranking
424

Genetics

D-Index
118
Citations
79189
World Ranking
401
National Ranking
207

Research.com Recognitions

  • 2025 - Research.com Best Female Scientists Award

Overview

Kira S. Makarova is affiliated with the National Institutes of Health in the United States. Their research primarily spans the field of Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology, with a strong focus on Molecular Biology.

The subfields of study addressed in their work include:

  • Molecular Biology
  • Ecology
  • Genetics
  • Plant Science
  • Endocrinology

Key topics covered in their research include:

  • RNA and protein synthesis mechanisms
  • CRISPR and Genetic Engineering
  • Bacteriophages and microbial interactions
  • Genomics and Phylogenetic Studies
  • Bacterial Genetics and Biotechnology
  • Microbial Community Ecology and Physiology
  • RNA regulation and disease

Makarova has contributed to several notable recent papers, including:

  • "COG database update: focus on microbial diversity, model organisms, and widespread pathogens," 2020, Nucleic Acids Research
  • "Diverse enzymatic activities mediate antiviral immunity in prokaryotes," 2020, Science
  • "The widespread IS200/IS605 transposon family encodes diverse programmable RNA-guided endonucleases," 2021, Science
  • "Expanded diversity of Asgard archaea and their relationships with eukaryotes," 2021, Nature
  • "Programmable RNA targeting with the single-protein CRISPR effector Cas7-11," 2021, Nature

Their frequent co-authors consist of:

  • Eugene V. Koonin
  • Yuri I. Wolf
  • Sergey Shmakov
  • Han Altae-Tran
  • Svetlana Karamycheva

Publication venues where their work appears often include:

  • bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
  • Nature Communications
  • Nucleic Acids Research
  • Science
  • The CRISPR Journal

Best Publications

  • Cpf1 is a single RNA-guided endonuclease of a class 2 CRISPR-Cas system.

    Bernd Zetsche;Jonathan S. Gootenberg;Omar O. Abudayyeh;Ian M. Slaymaker

  • Small CRISPR RNAs guide antiviral defense in prokaryotes

    Stan J. J. Brouns;Matthijs M. Jore;Magnus Lundgren;Edze R. Westra

  • Evolution and classification of the CRISPR-Cas systems

    Kira S. Makarova;Daniel H. Haft;Rodolphe Barrangou;Stan J. J. Brouns

  • An updated evolutionary classification of CRISPR–Cas systems

    Kira S. Makarova;Yuri I. Wolf;Omer S. Alkhnbashi;Fabrizio Costa

  • In vivo genome editing using Staphylococcus aureus Cas9

    F. Ann Ran;Le Cong;Winston X. Yan;David A. Scott

  • Evolutionary classification of CRISPR-Cas systems: a burst of class 2 and derived variants.

    Kira S. Makarova;Yuri I. Wolf;Jaime Iranzo;Sergey A. Shmakov

  • Crystal structure of Cas9 in complex with guide RNA and target DNA

    Takashi Yamano;Hiroshi Nishimasu;Hiroshi Nishimasu;Bernd Zetsche;Hisato Hirano

  • C2c2 is a single-component programmable RNA-guided RNA-targeting CRISPR effector

    Omar O. Abudayyeh;Jonathan S. Gootenberg;Silvana Konermann;Silvana Konermann;Silvana Konermann;Julia Joung;Julia Joung;Julia Joung

  • Comparative genomics of the lactic acid bacteria

    K. Makarova;A. Slesarev;Y. Wolf;A. Sorokin

  • A putative RNA-interference-based immune system in prokaryotes: computational analysis of the predicted enzymatic machinery, functional analogies with eukaryotic RNAi, and hypothetical mechanisms of action

    Kira S Makarova;Nick V Grishin;Svetlana A Shabalina;Yuri I Wolf

  • Expanded microbial genome coverage and improved protein family annotation in the COG database

    Michael Y. Galperin;Kira S. Makarova;Yuri I. Wolf;Eugene V. Koonin

  • Horizontal gene transfer in prokaryotes: quantification and classification.

    Eugene V. Koonin;Kira S. Makarova;L. Aravind

  • Diversity, classification and evolution of CRISPR-Cas systems

    Eugene V Koonin;Kira S Makarova;Feng Zhang

  • Discovery and Functional Characterization of Diverse Class 2 CRISPR-Cas Systems

    Sergey Shmakov;Omar O. Abudayyeh;Kira S. Makarova;Yuri I. Wolf

  • Genome sequence of the radioresistant bacterium Deinococcus radiodurans R1.

    O. White;J. A. Eisen;J. F. Heidelberg;E. K. Hickey

  • A comprehensive evolutionary classification of proteins encoded in complete eukaryotic genomes

    Eugene V Koonin;Natalie D Fedorova;John D Jackson;Aviva R Jacobs

  • Diversity and evolution of class 2 CRISPR-Cas systems

    Sergey Shmakov;Aaron Smargon;David Scott;David Cox

  • Genome Sequence and Comparative Analysis of the Solvent-Producing Bacterium Clostridium acetobutylicum

    J Nölling;G Breton;M V Omelchenko;K S Makarova;K S Makarova

  • Genome of the Extremely Radiation-Resistant Bacterium Deinococcus radiodurans Viewed from the Perspective of Comparative Genomics

    Kira S. Makarova;Kira S. Makarova;L. Aravind;Yuri I. Wolf;Roman L. Tatusov

  • Accumulation of Mn(II) in Deinococcus radiodurans facilitates gamma-radiation resistance.

    M. J. Daly;E. K. Gaidamakova;V. Y. Matrosova;A. Vasilenko

Frequent Co-Authors

Eugene V. Koonin
Eugene V. Koonin National Institutes of Health
Yuri I. Wolf
Yuri I. Wolf National Institutes of Health
Konstantin Severinov
Konstantin Severinov Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
Michael Y. Galperin
Michael Y. Galperin National Institutes of Health
L. Aravind
L. Aravind National Institutes of Health
John van der Oost
John van der Oost Wageningen University & Research
Igor B. Rogozin
Igor B. Rogozin National Institutes of Health
Dimitry Y. Sorokin
Dimitry Y. Sorokin Delft University of Technology
Natalya Yutin
Natalya Yutin National Institutes of Health

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