Two MicroRNA researchers have been granted the prestigious Nobel Prize in Medicine as a result of their exceptional efforts.
Victor Ambrose and Gary Ruvkun were awarded by the Nobel Assembly for the revelation of a new class of tiny molecules that could help in gene regulation.
The two researchers will share a prize of 11 million Swedish kronor (approximately $1.06 million).
“It’s quite a sea change. I have won other awards before, but they were very quiet in comparison,” the 72-year-old Harvard Medical School professor said when the prize committee called him early on Monday morning to inform him of the news.
Background
The roots of their discovery trace back to the late 1980s, when Ambros and Ruvkun, as postdoctoral fellows in the laboratory of Nobel laureate Robert Horvitz, began studying the roundworm Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans).
Because of its simplicity and the existence of distinct cell types, this 1 mm long animal has long been favoured by scientists as a model organism for genetic studies.
Gene regulation is a fascinating topic for most scientists, as it has to do with the process of turning genes on and off.
This means one can regulate when and where they want a specific gene to be expressed, as each cell can select only the relevant instructions pertaining to it.
Genes are turned on and off in different patterns during development to make a brain cell look and act different from a liver cell or a muscle cell, for example
Their Nobel-winning work explains how cells, despite having identical DNA, can perform different functions by regulating gene expression differently. This understanding is crucial for developing treatments for diseases that involve gene dysregulation, such as cancer and neurodegenerative disorders.
The Nobel Price in Medicine
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine is awarded annually by the Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institute.
This prestigious prize honours individuals or groups for outstanding contributions to medical science. Each Nobel Prize comes with a medal, a diploma, and a cash award of approximately 11 million Swedish kronor (about $1 million USD), funded by the Nobel Foundation.
The Nobel Prizes in Literature, Chemistry, Physics, Peace, and Economic Sciences will also be announced in the next few days, demonstrating the diversity of human accomplishments in a variety of fields.
What do you need to know?
Ambros and Ruvkun’s discovery of microRNAs could lead to new treatments for various diseases, particularly cancers and neurodegenerative disorders.
Scientists may create targeted treatments to address problems with gene expression by modifying microRNA levels. This approach could help address the root causes of diseases like cancer, Alzheimer’s, and heart disease, leading to more effective and personalized treatments.
