The Nobel Prize in the field of physiology or medicine has been awarded to US. scientists David Julius and Ardem Patapoutian.They were cited for their discovery of receptors for temperature and touch.
The winners were announced Monday by Thomas Perlmann, secretary-general of the Nobel Committee.
Last year’s prize went to three scientists who discovered the liver-ravaging hepatitis C virus, a breakthrough that led to cures for the deadly disease and tests to keep the scourge from spreading though blood banks.
“Our ability to sense heat, cold and touch is essential for survival and underpins our interaction with the world around us. In our daily lives we take these sensations for granted, but how are nerve impulses initiated so that temperature and pressure can be perceived? This question has been solved by this year’s Nobel Prize laureates,” the Nobel Assembly said in a statement announcing the prize.
“David Julius utilized capsaicin, a pungent compound from chili peppers that induces a burning sensation, to identify a sensor in the nerve endings of the skin that responds to heat. Ardem Patapoutian used pressure-sensitive cells to discover a novel class of sensors that respond to mechanical stimuli in the skin and internal organs,” it added.
The prestigious award comes with a gold medal and 10 million Swedish kronor (over $1.14 million). The prize money comes from a bequest left by the prize’s creator, Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel, who died in 1895.
The prize is the first to be awarded this year. The other prizes are for outstanding work in the fields of physics, chemistry, literature, peace and economics.
“Alfred Nobel was very clear in his will when he listed the criteria for the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. He specifically stated he was looking for a discovery that would have a benefit to humankind so our criteria is very narrow. We’re looking for a discovery that has either opened doors and helped us think about a problem in a new way, or the discovery has changed the way we think about a problem it’s paradigm shifting,” Juleen Zierath, professor of physiology and a member of the Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet said describing the nominations for the prestigious award.
