2026 Thomas R. Cech: Molecular Biology Researcher – H-Index, Publications & Awards

Discipline name	D-Index	World Ranking	Current World Ranking	National Ranking	Current National Ranking	Publications	Citations
Molecular Biology	144	105	92	68	60	439	78273

Thomas R. Cech publication distribution in Molecular Biology in 2026

The chart shows the distribution of publications by all Research.com ranked scientists in the field of Molecular Biology in 2026. The highlighted bar marks where Thomas R. Cech sits on this spectrum.

47 publications 564+

This scientist: 439 publications — 93rd percentile

93% of scientists in this discipline score the same or lower.

The last bar groups every scientist with 564 publications or more.

Thomas R. Cech D-index placement in Molecular Biology in 2026

The chart shows the D-index (discipline H-index) distribution of Molecular Biology scientists ranked by Research.com in 2026. The highlighted bar marks where Thomas R. Cech sits on this spectrum.

40 D-Index 145+

This scientist: 144 D-Index — 97th percentile

97% of scientists in this discipline score the same or lower.

The last bar groups every scientist with 145 D-Index or more.

Research.com Recognitions

2026 - Research.com Molecular Biology in United States Leader Award
2025 - Research.com Molecular Biology in United States Leader Award
2023 - Research.com Molecular Biology in United States Leader Award
2000 - Member of the National Academy of Medicine (NAM)
1999 - Member of Academia Europaea
1995 - US President's National Medal of Science "For his discoveries regarding RNA catalysis that have added new dimensions to the understanding of the role of RNA in living systems.", Awarded by President Clinton at a White House ceremony on October 18, 1995.
1991 - Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
1989 - Nobel Prize for their discovery of catalytic properties of RNA
1988 - Canada Gairdner International Award
1988 - Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
1988 - Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research, Lasker Foundation
1988 - Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize, Columbia University
1987 - Member of the National Academy of Sciences
1985 - Fellow of John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation

Overview

Thomas R. Cech is affiliated with the University of Colorado Boulder in the United States. Their research primarily lies within the field of Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology, with a strong focus on Molecular Biology, Physiology, and Cancer Research among other subfields. The work covers diverse topics including RNA modifications and cancer, telomeres and senescence, RNA research and splicing, epigenetics and DNA methylation, genomics and chromatin dynamics, advanced biosensing techniques, and DNA and nucleic acid chemistry.

Several recent papers authored or co-authored by Thomas R. Cech demonstrate the scope and focus of their research:

"Shaping human telomeres: from shelterin and CST complexes to telomeric chromatin organization" (2021), published in Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology
"RNA is essential for PRC2 chromatin occupancy and function in human pluripotent stem cells" (2020), published in Nature Genetics
"The structure of human CST reveals a decameric assembly bound to telomeric DNA" (2020), published in Science
"Polycomb-mediated genome architecture enables long-range spreading of H3K27 methylation" (2022), published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
"Competition between PRC2.1 and 2.2 subcomplexes regulates PRC2 chromatin occupancy in human stem cells" (2020), published in Molecular Cell

Their frequent co-authors include Arthur J. Zaug, Anne R. Gooding, Wayne O. Hemphill, Karen J. Goodrich, and John L. Rinn.

Thomas R. Cech often publishes in venues such as bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory), Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Nucleic Acids Research, RNA, and Science. This distribution highlights their involvement in well-regarded and diverse scientific journals.

The scientist has received numerous awards throughout their career. Notable recognitions include:

Member of the National Academy of Medicine (2000)
Member of Academia Europaea (1999)
US President's National Medal of Science (1995) for discoveries regarding RNA catalysis
Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (1991)
Nobel Prize (1989) for discovery of catalytic properties of RNA
Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize, Columbia University (1988)
Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (1988)
Canada Gairdner International Award (1988)
Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research (1988)
Member of the National Academy of Sciences (1987)
Fellow of John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation (1985)

Best Publications

Self-splicing RNA: Autoexcision and autocyclization of the ribosomal RNA intervening sequence of tetrahymena

Kelly Kruger;Paula J. Grabowski;Arthur J. Zaug;Julie Sands

3190
Citations
Telomerase catalytic subunit homologs from fission yeast and human

Toru M. Nakamura;Gregg B. Morin;Gregg B. Morin;Karen B. Chapman;Karen B. Chapman;Scott L. Weinrich;Scott L. Weinrich

3121
Citations
The noncoding RNA revolution-trashing old rules to forge new ones.

Thomas R. Cech;Thomas R. Cech;Joan A. Steitz

2467
Citations
Crystal Structure of a Group I Ribozyme Domain: Principles of RNA Packing

Jamie H. Cate;Anne R. Gooding;Anne R. Gooding;Elaine Podell;Elaine Podell;Kaihong Zhou

1706
Citations
Reverse Transcriptase Motifs in the Catalytic Subunit of Telomerase

Joachim Lingner;Timothy R. Hughes;Andrej Shevchenko;Matthias Mann

1659
Citations
Monovalent cation-induced structure of telomeric DNA: The G-quartet model

James R. Williamson;M.K. Raghuraman;Thomas R. Cech;Thomas R. Cech

1520
Citations
Inhibition of telomerase by G-quartet DNA structures.

Alan M. Zahler;James R. Williamson;James R. Williamson;Thomas R. Cech;David M. Prescott

1449
Citations
Pot1, the Putative Telomere End-Binding Protein in Fission Yeast and Humans

Peter Baumann;Thomas R. Cech

1350
Citations
In vitro splicing of the ribosomal RNA precursor of tetrahymena: Involvement of a guanosine nucleotide in the excision of the intervening sequence

Thomas R. Cech;Arthur J. Zaug;Paula J. Grabowski

1302
Citations
Self-splicing of group I introns.

Thomas R. Cech

1248
Citations
The RNA World

Gesteland;Thomas Cech

1186
Citations
Rna ribozyme polymerases, dephosphorylases, restriction endoribonucleases and methods.

Thomas R. Cech;Arthur J. Zaug;Michael D. Been

1074
Citations
Biological catalysis by RNA.

Thomas R. Cech;Brenda L. Bass

937
Citations
The POT1-TPP1 telomere complex is a telomerase processivity factor

Feng Wang;Elaine R. Podell;Arthur J. Zaug;Yuting Yang

866
Citations
The chemistry of self-splicing RNA and RNA enzymes.

Thomas R. Cech

802
Citations
The intervening sequence RNA of Tetrahymena is an enzyme.

Arthur J. Zaug;Thomas R. Cech

767
Citations
How do lncRNAs regulate transcription

Yicheng Long;Xueyin Wang;Daniel T. Youmans;Daniel T. Youmans;Thomas R. Cech

714
Citations
Regulation of telomere length and function by a Myb-domain protein in fission yeast

Julia Promisel Cooper;Elaine R. Nimmo;Robin C. Allshire;Thomas R. Cech

644
Citations
The generality of self-splicing RNA: Relationship to nuclear mRNA splicing

Thomas R. Cech

633
Citations
Conserved sequences and structures of group I introns: building an active site for RNA catalysis — a review

Thomas R. Cech

624
Citations

Frequent Co-Authors

Joachim Lingner École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne

Gregg B. Morin University of British Columbia

Calvin B. Harley Geron (United States)

Michael D. Been Duke University

Daniel Herschlag Stanford University

John L. Rinn University of Colorado Boulder

Scott A. Strobel Yale University

Thomas Jung Mendel University Brno

Anna Marie Pyle Yale University

Jennifer A. Doudna University of California, Berkeley

External Links

Wikipedia of Thomas R. Cech Personal website of Thomas R. Cech

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