Five South African neuroscientists have been named in Research.com’s 2026 World Online Ranking of Best Neuroscientists!
South Africa (13 May 2026) – Research.com has released the fifth edition of its annual world neuroscientist ranking, and South Africa has five names on the list.
The report aims to connect the global academic community with leading neuroscientists, promote collaboration, and bring visibility to research that’s pushing brain science forward.
Rankings were made through the assessment of around 9600 scientist profiles, using academic data sources OpenAlex and CrossRef. Researchers are ranked primarily by something called their ‘D-index’ which is a metric that measures research impact specifically within neuroscience.
To qualify, scientists need a minimum D-index of 30, with most of their published work in the field. Every profile is also manually verified before making the final list.
Globally, the United States leads the top 1000 with 505 neuroscientists, followed by the United Kingdom with 114 and Germany with 83. The world’s top-ranked neuroscientist is Solomon H. Snyder of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, with a D-index of 286.
South Africa’s Five!
Three South African universities are represented across the five researchers who made the list, and between them they’ve accumulated tens of thousands of citations from scientists around the world who are building on their work.
Paul R. Manger from the University of the Witwatersrand leads locally, ranked #1 nationally and #3223 worldwide. He has a D-index of 62 and the highest citation count of the group – 14,012 citations across 299 publications.
Mark Solms, from the University of Cape Town ranks #2 nationally and #4639 globally, with a D-index of 53 and 12,647 citations from 281 publications.
Brian H. Harvey of North-West University sits at #3 nationally and #5359 worldwide, with a D-index of 50, 185 publications, and 7446 citations.
Related Stories
Goodbye Uncle Sidney: South Africa Mourns a Man We All Came to Love
South Africa, We Have SO Much Good News to Share With You!Vivienne A. Russell, also from UCT, ranks #4 nationally and #6755 globally. Her 151 publications have earned 9421 citations, more than Harvey’s despite fewer papers, pointing to a strong per-paper impact.
Fleur M. Howells, also from UCT, rounds out the South African top five at #7619 globally. With 95 publications and a D-index of 39, and 8260 citations.
Three of the five are based at the University of Cape Town, with Wits and North-West University also on the board. It’s a solid showing for South African brain science in the global ranks!
by 
