Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) have been banned since 1978, but their persistence in the environment and in living tissue means that research into their biological effects and environmental distribution is still of primary importance. As a result, the list of most-cited papers in PCB research is headed by assessments of the toxicity of aromatic hydrocarbons with dioxin-like properties in humans and wildlife. Other topics high on the list are reviews of the effects of PCBs and other organochlorides on human health; the possible developmental effects in both humans and wildlife; assessments of the distribution of these compounds throughout the environment, as well as the estrogenic potency of PCBs and their interactions with estrogen receptors and the aromatic hydrocarbon receptor.

Methodology

To construct this database, papers were extracted based on topic-supplied keywords for Polychlorinated Biphenyls. The keywords used were as follows: 

poly-chlorinated biphenyl*
   or
polychlorinated biphenyl*
   or
PCBs

The baseline time span for this database is 1993-2003 (fourth bimonthly). The resulting database contained 8,747 papers; 16,682 authors; 102 countries; 1,096 journals; and 4,008 institutions.

Rankings

Once the database was in place, it was used to generate the lists of top 20 papers, authors, journals, institutions, and nations, covering a time span of 1993-2003 (fourth bimonthly).

The top 20 papers are ranked according to total cites. Rankings for author, journal, institution, and country are listed in three ways: according to total cites, total papers, and total cites/paper. The paper thresholds used to determine scientist, institution, country, and journal rankings according to total cites/paper were as follows: 34, 49, 65, and 75, respectively.

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