Topics and Trends in Most Cited Marine and coastal plant biology Papers

At a glance

Field

Marine and coastal plant biology

Cohort label

Class of 2026 (2024 publications)

Papers analyzed

4,390

Papers ranked

20

Top topics in ranked papers

Blue carbon, seagrass meadows, fucoidan, antioxidant capacity, kelp forests

Publication window

Jan 1, 2024 – Dec 31, 2024

Eligibility

Research articles; reviews excluded

Citation window

18 months post-publication

18m citation range

20–68

Data source

OpenAlex · Retrieved Jul 2026

License

CC BY 4.0

Rankings

20 papers ranked by 18-month citation count

Topic trends

Dominant research themes and year-over-year shifts in Marine and coastal plant biology

What Topics Define the Class of 2026?

The Class of 2026 in marine and coastal plant biology is strongly defined by blue carbon ecosystems and high-value marine biochemicals. Coastal vegetated habitats represent the primary ecological foundation, led by blue carbon (16% normalized frequency) and seagrass meadows (14%), alongside kelp forests (8%) and carbon sequestration dynamics (8%). Researchers are actively quantifying coastal carbon budgets and examining how vegetated habitats mitigate environmental change. Concurrently, a major biochemical cluster centers on seaweed bioactive compounds and extraction technologies. High-value marine polysaccharides, particularly fucoidan (8%) and ulvan (4%), are prominent alongside functional assays measuring antioxidant capacity (8%), DPPH radical scavenging (6%), and ABTS radical reduction (4%). Advanced bioprocessing techniques like ultrasound-assisted extraction (6%) are increasingly integrated to refine green extraction workflows for algae. Additional key themes encompass species distribution modeling, salt marsh ecology, brown algae physiological traits, and macroalgal blooms across regional coastal waters such as the Yellow Sea. Together, these dominant themes demonstrate a dual focus within marine plant biology: expanding ecological understanding of coastal carbon sinks while advancing high-value pharmaceutical and industrial applications from marine flora.

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

Comparing the Class of 2025 to the Class of 2026 reveals a clear strategic pivot toward molecular genomics, invasive ecology, and high-precision bioprocessing. The most notable growth was driven by comparative genomics, which entered the top cohort at 6% normalized frequency, accompanied by genomic insights into whole-genome duplication (4%) and horizontal gene transfer (4%). Invasive macroalgal species and green tides also saw rapid escalation; Rugulopteryx okamurae and Ulva prolifera surged from zero representation in 2023 to 6% each in 2024, alongside Spartina alterniflora invasions (4%). In contrast, broader observational and climate anomaly themes experienced significant relative declines: carbon stocks studies dropped sharply from 14% to 4%, while marine heatwave research fell from 14% to 8%. Furthermore, methodological focus shifted toward standardized biochemical evaluation, with DPPH radical scavenging assays (6%) and ultrasound-assisted extraction (6%) gaining substantial momentum. This shift highlights an evolving discipline moving beyond static baseline carbon counting toward genomic adaptation, invasion dynamics, and refined marine bioprospecting.

Cite this ranking

Pepkio Research Index (PRI). Topics and Trends in Most Cited Marine and coastal plant biology Papers, Class of 2026. https://pri.pepkio.com/top-papers/marine-and-coastal-plant-biology/2026. Accessed 2026-07-24.

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

Related rankings

• Mycorrhizal Fungi and Plant Interactions
• Nematode management and characterization studies
• Algal biology and biofuel production
• Plant Physiology and Cultivation Studies
• Plant Molecular Biology Research