# Impact of Heavy Metal Pollution in the Environment on the Metabolic Profile of Medicinal Plants and Their Therapeutic Potential

*PRI Rank #17 · Topics and Trends in Most Cited Plant Stress Responses and Tolerance Papers, Class of 2026*

*Canonical URL: https://pri.pepkio.com/top-papers/plant-stress-responses-and-tolerance/2026/rank-17*

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Rank | #17 |
| 18m citations | 54 |
| Journal | Plants |
| Year | 2024 |
| DOI | 10.3390/plants13060913 |
| Corresponding authors | Daniela Ionela Ferţu, Maria Gavrilescu |
| Institution | “Gheorghe Asachi” Technical University of Iasi, Romania |

**Ranking page:** [Topics and Trends in Most Cited Plant Stress Responses and Tolerance Papers, Class of 2026](https://pri.pepkio.com/top-papers/plant-stress-responses-and-tolerance/2026)

**Paper link:** [10.3390/plants13060913](https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13060913)

## Topics

Heavy metal stress · medicinal plants · antioxidant capacity · biosynthetic pathways · secondary metabolites · therapeutic potential · targeted genetic editing · Antioxidant defense system · metal-contaminated environments · Phytohormone signaling · plant adaptive mechanisms · heavy metal contamination · plant resilience · Physiological responses · biochemical responses · mitigation strategies

## Cite this ranking

```
Pepkio Research Index (PRI). Topics and Trends in Most Cited Plant Stress Responses and Tolerance Papers, Class of 2026. https://pri.pepkio.com/top-papers/plant-stress-responses-and-tolerance/2026. Accessed 2026-10-28.

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
```