David Julius and Ardem Patapoutian won for their discoveries on nerve sensors for temperature and touch.
US scientists David Julius and Ardem Patapoutian won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for discoveries about nerve receptors for temperature and touch.
David Julius and Ardem Patapoutian were presented with the award in the field of physiology or medicine on Monday, announced the Secretary General of the Nobel Committee Thomas Perlmann.
“The groundbreaking discoveries … by this year’s Nobel Prize winners have enabled us to understand how heat, cold and mechanical force can trigger the nerve impulses that enable us to perceive and adapt to the world,” said the committee when the winners were announced .
“In our daily life we take these sensations for granted, but how are nerve impulses triggered so that temperature and pressure can be perceived? This year’s Nobel Prize winners have solved this question. “
Thomas Perlmann, Secretary of the Nobel Committee, stands near a screen showing the winners of the 2021 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, David Julius (left) and Ardem Patapoutian [File: Jonathan Nackstrand/AFP]
Patrik Ernfors, member of the Nobel Committee, said the duo’s discoveries unlock “one of nature’s secrets”.
Julius, a professor at the University of California at San Francisco, used capsaicin, the active ingredient in chili peppers, to identify the nerve sensors that enable the skin to respond to heat.
Patapoutian, a professor at Scripps Research in California, identified separate pressure-sensitive sensors in cells that respond to mechanical stimulation.
“It is actually something that is vital to our survival, so it’s a very important and profound discovery,” said Ernfors.
Last year’s Physiology or Medicine award went to three scientists who discovered the liver-destroying hepatitis C virus, a breakthrough that resulted in cures for the deadly disease and tests to prevent the scourge from spreading in blood banks.
The developers of vaccines against the coronavirus were also considered top contenders this year.
The prestigious award comes with a gold medal and 10 million Swedish kronor ($ 1.14 million). The prize money comes from a legacy of the creator of the prize, the Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel, who died in 1895.
The prizes for outstanding work in the fields of physics, chemistry, literature, peace and economics will be awarded in the coming week.
