Topics and Trends in Most Cited Animal Virus Infections Studies Papers

Ranked by citations 18 months after publication

Class of 2026 (Papers Published in 2024)

What topics and trends defined most-cited Animal Virus Infections Studies research in the Class of 2026?

The Class of 2026 in Animal Virus Infections Studies is heavily focused on SARS-CoV-2 evolution, particularly immune evasion by Omicron subvariants like XBB.1.5 and JN.1. A major shift from 2023 to 2024 shows rising focus on reactogenicity, antibody durability, and newer variants like EG.5.1 and JN.1, alongside a relative decline in broader SARS-CoV-2 research.

See details ↓

Updated September 14, 2026

At a glance

Field
Animal Virus Infections Studies
Cohort label
Class of 2026 (2024 publications)
Papers analyzed
5014
Papers ranked
20
Top topics in ranked papers
Immune evasion, Omicron XBB.1.5, SARS-CoV-2, Spike protein
Publication window
Jan 1, 2024 – Dec 31, 2024
Eligibility
Research articles; reviews excluded
Citation window
18 months post-publication
18m citation range
45–145
Data source
OpenAlex · Retrieved September 2026
License
CC BY 4.0

Rankings

20 papers ranked by 18-month citation count

#2 of 5,014
13618m citations

XBB.1.5 monovalent mRNA vaccine booster elicits robust neutralizing antibodies against XBB subvariants and JN.1

Qian Wang et al.Cell Host & Microbe202410.1016/j.chom.2024.01.014

Aubree Gordon, Lihong Liu, David D. HoAaron Diamond AIDS Research Center, United States

XBB.1.5 monovalent vaccineNeutralizing antibodiesOmicron XBB.1.5EG.5.1HV.1HK.3JD.1.1JN.1Spike proteinOmicron subvariantNeutralization titerImmune imprintingBivalent BA.4-5 mRNA boosterBooster vaccinationpreviously uninfected individualsID50
Badge
#3 of 5,014
9118m citations

Efficacy and Safety of Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) Prefusion F Protein Vaccine (RSVPreF3 OA) in Older Adults Over 2 RSV Seasons

Michael G Ison et al.Clinical Infectious Diseases202410.1093/cid/ciae010

Aurélie Olivier, Marie Van der WielenBethesda, United States

RSVPreF3 OARSV vaccineadjuvanted vaccineolder adults ≥60 yearsRSV-associated lower respiratory tract diseasesevere RSV-LRTDvaccine efficacy over 2 RSV seasonsrevaccination regimensingle-dose vaccine durabilityphase 3 blinded trialReactogenicityRSV seasonRSV prefusion F protein
Badge
#5 of 5,014
7418m citations

SARS-CoV-2-infection- and vaccine-induced antibody responses are long lasting with an initial waning phase followed by a stabilization phase

Komal Srivastava et al.Immunity202410.1016/j.immuni.2024.01.017

Florian Krammer, Viviana SimonIcahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, United States

SARS-CoV-2mRNA vaccineHumoral responsesantibody kineticslongitudinal samplesprimary immunizationpre-existing immunityHybrid immunityantibody waningstabilization phaseBooster vaccinationBreakthrough infectionAntibody titersbiphasic decayVaccine-induced immunityinfection-induced immunityAntibody durabilitysuccessive antigen exposure
Badge
#7 of 5,014
6418m citations

SARS-CoV-2-specific plasma cells are not durably established in the bone marrow long-lived compartment after mRNA vaccination

Doan C Nguyen et al.Nature Medicine202410.1038/s41591-024-03278-y

F. Eun‐Hyung LeeEmory University, United States

COVID-19 mRNA vaccineLong-lived plasma cellsantibody-secreting cellsSARS-CoV-2-specific antibodiesantibody waninginfluenza-specific ASCstetanus-specific ASCsnon-LLPC subsetAntibody titersBM ASC culture supernatantPCR-proven SARS-CoV-2 infectionHybrid immunityIgG LLPCsIgG non-LLPCsnon-LLPC:LLPC ratioAntibody durabilitybone marrow niche establishment
Badge
#11 of 5,014
5918m citations

Virological characteristics of the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron XBB.1.5 variant

Tomokazu Tamura, Takashi Irie, Sayaka Deguchi, Hisano Yajima, Masumi Tsuda, Hesham Nasser, Keita Mizuma, Arnon Plianchaisuk, Saori Suzuki et al.Nature Communications202410.1038/s41467-024-45274-3

Shiho Tanaka, Shinya Tanaka, Kei Sato, Takao Hashiguchi, Kazuo Takayama, Takasuke FukuharaHokkaido University, Japan

SARS-CoV-2Omicron XBB.1.5Omicron XBB.1S486P mutationORF8 nonsense mutationphylogenetic analysisNeutralization assayImmune evasionACE2spike protein structureHamster modelVirulenceMHC suppressionRecombinant SARS-CoV-2
Badge
#15 of 5,014
5318m citations

Interim Report of the Reactogenicity and Immunogenicity of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 XBB–Containing Vaccines

Spyros Chalkias et al.The Journal of Infectious Diseases202410.1093/infdis/jiae067

Spyros ChalkiasModerna, United States

mRNA-1273.815mRNA-1273.231Omicron XBB.1.5Monovalent vaccineBivalent COVID-19 vaccineOmicron BA.4/BA.5Neutralizing antibodiesXBB.1.16EG.5.1Omicron BA.2.86JN.1BQ.1.1Cross-neutralizationfifth dosebooster immunogenicityReactogenicityspike mRNASARS-CoV-2 variantsFL.1.5.1HK.3.1
Badge
#16 of 5,014
5018m citations

An Omicron-specific, self-amplifying mRNA booster vaccine for COVID-19: a phase 2/3 randomized trial

Amit Saraf, Rohan Gurjar et al.Nature Medicine202410.1038/s41591-024-02955-2

Sanjay SinghGennova Biopharmaceuticals Limited, India

GEMCOVAC-OMself-amplifying mRNA vaccineOmicron BA.1B.1.1.529Intradermal administrationthermostable vaccineBBV152ChAdOx1 nCoV-19GEMCOVAC-19D614G variantanti-spike IgG antibodiesNeutralizing antibodiesNeutralization assayseroconversionBooster vaccinationPhase 2/3 trialMonovalent vaccinevariant-specific immunogenicity
Badge
#17 of 5,014
4918m citations

Recurrent SARS-CoV-2 spike mutations confer growth advantages to select JN.1 sublineages

Qian Wang et al.Emerging Microbes & Infections202410.1080/22221751.2024.2402880

Aubree Gordon, Yicheng Guo, David D. Ho, Lihong LiuAaron Diamond AIDS Research Center, United States

SARS-CoV-2Omicron JN.1Spike protein mutationsR346T mutationF456L mutationT572I mutationKP.2 sublineageKP.3 sublineageImmune evasionACE2 binding affinityAntibody evasionRBD class-1 monoclonal antibodiesBreakthrough infectionInfectivityV1104L mutationQ493E mutationSD1-directed mAbsOmicron BA.2viral fitnessBooster vaccination
Badge
#20 of 5,014
4518m citations

Long-Term Prognosis of Patients With Myocarditis Attributed to COVID-19 mRNA Vaccination, SARS-CoV-2 Infection, or Conventional Etiologies

Laura Semenzato et al.JAMA202410.1001/jama.2024.16380

Laura Semenzato, Mahmoud ZureikEPI-PHARE Scientific Interest Group, France

Myocarditisconventional myocarditisSARS-CoV-2 infectionCOVID-19 mRNA vaccinecardiovascular complications18-month follow-upFrench National Health Data Systemweighted Cox modelshospital readmission for myopericarditiscomposite clinical outcomegeneralized estimated equation modelsmedical management after dischargeyoung menstandardized hazard ratio
Badge

Dominant research themes and year-over-year shifts in Animal Virus Infections Studies

What Topics Define the Class of 2026?

The Animal Virus Infections Studies field for the Class of 2026 is overwhelmingly driven by research into SARS-CoV-2 and its continued evolution. Dominant themes include immune evasion strategies, the Spike protein, and specific Omicron subvariants, particularly XBB.1.5. This clustering suggests that the primary focus of highly cited research has shifted from acute pandemic response to understanding the persistent challenges of viral mutation and vaccine efficacy. The prominence of terms like 'reactogenicity' and 'antibody evasion' alongside 'bivalent COVID-19 vaccine' highlights a sustained effort to evaluate and optimize vaccination strategies in the face of an evolving virus.

Leading research themes
Leading research themes

How Did Topics Shift from the Class of 2025 to the Class of 2026?

Between the Class of 2025 and 2026, the landscape of Animal Virus Infections Studies shifted markedly toward understanding the long-term dynamics of COVID-19 immunity and newer viral lineages. The most significant risers include specific emergent variants such as JN.1, EG.5.1, and XBB.1.16, alongside functional concerns like 'antibody durability' and 'reactogenicity.' Conversely, broader topics like general SARS-CoV-2 research and older subvariants like Omicron BA.2 saw relative declines. This pattern indicates a maturation in the field, moving away from characterizing the pandemic broadly toward precise tracking of viral escape mechanisms and the waning of vaccine-induced immunity.

How topics shifted year over year
How topics shifted year over year
Methodology

PRI identifies high-impact research using a transparent, topic-agnostic framework applied consistently across scientific domains. Bibliographic records are drawn from OpenAlex, including publication dates, citation relationships, and document types.

This ranking covers the Class of 2026 cohort: journal articles published in 2024. Reviews and other non-article document types are excluded to ensure comparability.

Research impact is quantified with an 18-month post-publication citation window—the number of citing works published within 18 months of each paper's publication date. This metric captures early impact while controlling for publication age.

An LLM-based relevance classifier then reviews each candidate's title and abstract to confirm substantive alignment with the target domain. Only papers classified as relevant appear in the final ranking.

Zheng Su, Tinsley Li, Thematic Shifts in Early-High-Impact Cancer Genomics and Diagnostics Research: A Bibliometric and Semantic Analysis. bioRxiv 2026.07.04.736459; doi: https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.07.04.736459

Full methodologyGitHubbioRxiv preprint

Cite this ranking

Pepkio Research Index (PRI). Topics and Trends in Most Cited Animal Virus Infections Studies Papers, Class of 2026. https://pri.pepkio.com/top-papers/animal-virus-infections-studies/2026. Accessed 2026-10-24.

Methodology
Zheng Su, Tinsley Li, Thematic Shifts in Early-High-Impact Cancer Genomics and Diagnostics Research: A Bibliometric and Semantic Analysis. bioRxiv 2026.07.04.736459; doi: https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.07.04.736459