Justin L. Sonnenburg

38.9k total citations · 18 hit papers
117 papers, 23.6k citations indexed

About

Justin L. Sonnenburg is a scholar working on Molecular Biology, Food Science and Infectious Diseases. According to data from OpenAlex, Justin L. Sonnenburg has authored 117 papers receiving a total of 23.6k indexed citations (citations by other indexed papers that have themselves been cited), including 102 papers in Molecular Biology, 35 papers in Food Science and 34 papers in Infectious Diseases. Recurrent topics in Justin L. Sonnenburg's work include Gut microbiota and health (90 papers), Probiotics and Fermented Foods (35 papers) and Clostridium difficile and Clostridium perfringens research (34 papers). Justin L. Sonnenburg is often cited by papers focused on Gut microbiota and health (90 papers), Probiotics and Fermented Foods (35 papers) and Clostridium difficile and Clostridium perfringens research (34 papers). Justin L. Sonnenburg collaborates with scholars based in United States, United Kingdom and Canada. Justin L. Sonnenburg's co-authors include Fredrik Bäckhed, Jeffrey I. Gordon, Erica D. Sonnenburg, Daniel A. Peterson, Ruth E. Ley, Steven K. Higginbottom, Michael A. Fischbach, Purna Kashyap, Ángela Marcobal and Samuel A. Smits and has published in prestigious journals such as Nature, Science and Cell.

In The Last Decade

Justin L. Sonnenburg

116 papers receiving 23.2k citations

Hit Papers

Host-Bacterial Mutualism in the Human Intestine 2005 2026 2012 2019 2005 2016 2016 2014 2017 1000 2.0k 3.0k
What are hit papers?

Hit papers significantly outperform the citation benchmark for their cohort. A paper qualifies if it has ≥500 total citations, achieves ≥1.5× the top-1% citation threshold for papers in the same subfield and year (this is the minimum needed to enter the top 1%, not the average within it), or reaches the top citation threshold in at least one of its specific research topics.

  1. Host-Bacterial Mutualism in the Human Intestine
    2005 3.9k citations Justin L. Sonnenburg, Jeffrey I. Gordon et al. Science profile →
  2. Diet–microbiota interactions as moderators of human metabolism
    2016 1.6k citations Justin L. Sonnenburg et al. Nature profile →
  3. Diet-induced extinctions in the gut microbiota compound over generations
    2016 1.2k citations Erica D. Sonnenburg, Samuel A. Smits et al. Nature profile →
  4. Gut microbes promote colonic serotonin production through an effect of short‐chain fatty acids on enterochromaffin cells
    2014 968 citations Justin L. Sonnenburg, Purna Kashyap et al. profile →
  5. A gut bacterial pathway metabolizes aromatic amino acids into nine circulating metabolites
    2017 944 citations Dylan Dodd, William Van Treuren et al. Nature profile →
  6. Glycan Foraging in Vivo by an Intestine-Adapted Bacterial Symbiont
    2005 918 citations Justin L. Sonnenburg, Jian Xu et al. Science profile →
  7. Gut-microbiota-targeted diets modulate human immune status
    2021 790 citations Hannah C. Wastyk, Gabriela K. Fragiadakis et al. Cell profile →
  8. Microbiota-liberated host sugars facilitate post-antibiotic expansion of enteric pathogens
    2013 737 citations Jessica A. Ferreyra, Steven K. Higginbottom et al. Nature profile →
  9. Starving our Microbial Self: The Deleterious Consequences of a Diet Deficient in Microbiota-Accessible Carbohydrates
    2014 594 citations Erica D. Sonnenburg, Justin L. Sonnenburg profile →
  10. Specificity of Polysaccharide Use in Intestinal Bacteroides Species Determines Diet-Induced Microbiota Alterations
    2010 584 citations Erica D. Sonnenburg, Hongjun Zheng et al. Cell profile →
  11. Dysbiosis-Induced Secondary Bile Acid Deficiency Promotes Intestinal Inflammation
    2020 573 citations Michael A. Fischbach, Justin L. Sonnenburg et al. Cell Host & Microbe profile →
  12. Seasonal cycling in the gut microbiome of the Hadza hunter-gatherers of Tanzania
    2017 567 citations Samuel A. Smits, Erica D. Sonnenburg et al. Science profile →
  13. The Gut Microbiome: Connecting Spatial Organization to Function
    2017 438 citations Justin L. Sonnenburg et al. Cell Host & Microbe profile →
  14. Bacteroides in the Infant Gut Consume Milk Oligosaccharides via Mucus-Utilization Pathways
    2011 432 citations Ángela Marcobal, Erica D. Sonnenburg et al. Cell Host & Microbe profile →
  15. A Gut Commensal-Produced Metabolite Mediates Colonization Resistance to Salmonella Infection
    2018 354 citations Will Van Treuren, Kali M. Pruss et al. Cell Host & Microbe profile →
  16. Gut Microbiota-Produced Tryptamine Activates an Epithelial G-Protein-Coupled Receptor to Increase Colonic Secretion
    2018 310 citations Brianna B. Williams, Justin L. Sonnenburg et al. Cell Host & Microbe profile →
  17. The ancestral and industrialized gut microbiota and implications for human health
    2019 288 citations Erica D. Sonnenburg, Justin L. Sonnenburg profile →
  18. A metabolomics pipeline for the mechanistic interrogation of the gut microbiome
    2021 249 citations Shuo Han, Will Van Treuren et al. Nature profile →

Peers — A (Enhanced Table)

Peers by citation overlap · career bar shows stage (early→late) cites · hero ref

Name h Career Trend Papers Cites
Justin L. Sonnenburg United States 61 17.6k 5.4k 4.7k 4.6k 3.0k 117 23.6k
Petra Louis United Kingdom 54 17.8k 1.0× 6.7k 1.2× 5.8k 1.2× 3.2k 0.7× 5.2k 1.7× 101 24.4k
Paul W. O’Toole Ireland 83 19.2k 1.1× 6.6k 1.2× 7.8k 1.7× 3.9k 0.9× 4.1k 1.4× 297 29.4k
Erwin G. Zoetendal Netherlands 62 14.7k 0.8× 4.1k 0.7× 4.8k 1.0× 5.7k 1.2× 3.0k 1.0× 145 21.0k
Lora V. Hooper United States 69 19.6k 1.1× 5.7k 1.1× 4.9k 1.0× 5.9k 1.3× 3.1k 1.1× 114 31.7k
Patrizia Brigidi Italy 71 11.6k 0.7× 4.5k 0.8× 4.3k 0.9× 2.3k 0.5× 2.5k 0.8× 259 18.6k
Jens Walter Canada 74 16.7k 0.9× 5.3k 1.0× 8.3k 1.8× 3.4k 0.7× 5.9k 2.0× 203 25.2k
Kristin Verbeke Belgium 69 14.1k 0.8× 6.6k 1.2× 4.6k 1.0× 2.8k 0.6× 5.0k 1.7× 295 26.5k
Jeroen Raes Belgium 75 18.9k 1.1× 4.3k 0.8× 2.6k 0.6× 3.2k 0.7× 1.5k 0.5× 224 27.8k
Wendy S. Garrett United States 57 24.3k 1.4× 5.9k 1.1× 3.6k 0.8× 5.5k 1.2× 2.3k 0.8× 112 39.2k
Michael A. Fischbach United States 82 23.8k 1.4× 5.0k 0.9× 3.1k 0.7× 3.6k 0.8× 1.7k 0.6× 188 36.6k

Countries citing papers authored by Justin L. Sonnenburg

Since Specialization
Citations

This map shows the geographic impact of Justin L. Sonnenburg's research. It shows the number of citations coming from papers published by authors working in each country. You can also color the map by specialization and compare the number of citations received by Justin L. Sonnenburg with the expected number of citations based on a country's size and research output (numbers larger than one mean the country cites Justin L. Sonnenburg more than expected).

Fields of papers citing papers by Justin L. Sonnenburg

Since Specialization
Physical SciencesHealth SciencesLife SciencesSocial Sciences

This network shows the impact of papers produced by Justin L. Sonnenburg. Nodes represent research fields, and links connect fields that are likely to share authors. Colored nodes show fields that tend to cite the papers produced by Justin L. Sonnenburg. The network helps show where Justin L. Sonnenburg may publish in the future.

Co-authorship network of co-authors of Justin L. Sonnenburg

This figure shows the co-authorship network connecting the top 25 collaborators of Justin L. Sonnenburg. A scholar is included among the top collaborators of Justin L. Sonnenburg based on the total number of citations received by their joint publications. Widths of edges represent the number of papers authors have co-authored together. Node borders signify the number of papers an author published with Justin L. Sonnenburg. Justin L. Sonnenburg is excluded from the visualization to improve readability, since they are connected to all nodes in the network.

All Works

20 of 20 papers shown
1.
Fehr, Kelsey, Laéticia Céline Toe, Lindsay H. Allen, et al.. (2025). Time-specific bidirectional links between the maternal microbiome, milk composition, and infant gut microbiota. Cell Host & Microbe. 34(1). 149–166.e5.
2.
Olm, Matthew R., et al.. (2025). Metagenomic immunoglobulin sequencing reveals IgA coating of microbial strains in the healthy human gut. Nature Microbiology. 10(1). 112–125. 4 indexed citations
3.
Casterline, Benjamin W., et al.. (2024). Bacteroides fragilis toxin expression enables lamina propria niche acquisition in the developing mouse gut. Nature Microbiology. 9(1). 85–94. 12 indexed citations
4.
Han, Shuo, et al.. (2024). High-throughput identification of gut microbiome-dependent metabolites. Nature Protocols. 19(7). 2180–2205. 6 indexed citations
5.
Pensinger, Daniel A., William Van Treuren, Jackson O. Gardner, et al.. (2023). Butyrate Differentiates Permissiveness to Clostridioides difficile Infection and Influences Growth of Diverse C. difficile Isolates. Infection and Immunity. 91(2). e0057022–e0057022. 34 indexed citations
6.
Landry, Matthew J., Kristen Cunanan, Dalia Perelman, et al.. (2023). Cardiometabolic Effects of Omnivorous vs Vegan Diets in Identical Twins. JAMA Network Open. 6(11). e2344457–e2344457. 43 indexed citations
7.
Olm, Matthew R., Dylan Dahan, Matthew M. Carter, et al.. (2022). Robust variation in infant gut microbiome assembly across a spectrum of lifestyles. Science. 376(6598). 1220–1223. 110 indexed citations
8.
Wastyk, Hannah C., Gabriela K. Fragiadakis, Dalia Perelman, et al.. (2021). Gut-microbiota-targeted diets modulate human immune status. Cell. 184(16). 4137–4153.e14. 790 indexed citations breakdown →
9.
Pruss, Kali M. & Justin L. Sonnenburg. (2021). C. difficile exploits a host metabolite produced during toxin-mediated disease. Nature. 593(7858). 261–265. 58 indexed citations
10.
Han, Shuo, Will Van Treuren, Curt R. Fischer, et al.. (2021). A metabolomics pipeline for the mechanistic interrogation of the gut microbiome. Nature. 595(7867). 415–420. 249 indexed citations breakdown →
11.
Pruss, Kali M., Ángela Marcobal, Audrey M. Southwick, et al.. (2020). Mucin-derived O -glycans supplemented to diet mitigate diverse microbiota perturbations. The ISME Journal. 15(2). 577–591. 60 indexed citations
12.
Sirk, Shannon J., Andrew P. Klein, Curt R. Fischer, et al.. (2020). A Metabolic Pathway for Activation of Dietary Glucosinolates by a Human Gut Symbiont. Cell. 180(4). 717–728.e19. 108 indexed citations
13.
Sonnenburg, Justin L. & Erica D. Sonnenburg. (2019). Vulnerability of the industrialized microbiota. Science. 366(6464). 185 indexed citations
14.
Treuren, William Van, Samuel A. Smits, Nicole M. Davis, et al.. (2018). Microbiota-accessible carbohydrates suppress Clostridium difficile infection in a murine model. Nature Microbiology. 3(6). 662–669. 178 indexed citations
15.
Tong, Maomeng, Ian McHardy, Paul Ruegger, et al.. (2014). Reprograming of gut microbiome energy metabolism by the FUT2 Crohn’s disease risk polymorphism. The ISME Journal. 8(11). 2193–2206. 159 indexed citations
16.
Brown, Laura C., Cristina Peñaranda, Purna Kashyap, et al.. (2013). Production of α-Galactosylceramide by a Prominent Member of the Human Gut Microbiota. PLoS Biology. 11(7). e1001610–e1001610. 192 indexed citations
17.
Marcobal, Ángela & Justin L. Sonnenburg. (2012). Human milk oligosaccharide consumption by intestinal microbiota. Clinical Microbiology and Infection. 18. 12–15. 224 indexed citations
18.
Sonnenburg, Erica D., Hongjun Zheng, Payal Joglekar, et al.. (2010). Specificity of Polysaccharide Use in Intestinal Bacteroides Species Determines Diet-Induced Microbiota Alterations. Cell. 141(7). 1241–1252. 584 indexed citations breakdown →
19.
Marco, Maria L., Roger S. Bongers, Douwe Molenaar, et al.. (2009). Lifestyle of Lactobacillus plantarum in the mouse caecum. Environmental Microbiology. 11(10). 2747–2757. 90 indexed citations
20.
Sonnenburg, Justin L., et al.. (2005). Glycan Foraging in Vivo by an Intestine-Adapted Bacterial Symbiont. Science. 307(5717). 1955–1959. 918 indexed citations breakdown →

Rankless uses publication and citation data sourced from OpenAlex, an open and comprehensive bibliographic database. While OpenAlex provides broad and valuable coverage of the global research landscape, it—like all bibliographic datasets—has inherent limitations. These include incomplete records, variations in author disambiguation, differences in journal indexing, and delays in data updates. As a result, some metrics and network relationships displayed in Rankless may not fully capture the entirety of a scholar's output or impact.

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