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The Nobel Prize in medical science has been granted for revolutionary discoveries that clarify how the body's defense network targets dangerous infections while sparing the body's own cells.

Three renowned researchers—Japan's Shimon Sakaguchi and American experts Mary Brunkow and Dr. Ramsdell—received this accolade.

Their research uncovered specialized "security guards" within the defense system that eliminate malfunctioning defense cells that could attacking the organism.

The findings are now enabling new therapies for autoimmune diseases and malignancies.

These winners will share a prize fund valued at 11 million Swedish kronor.

Crucial Discoveries

"Their research has been decisive for comprehending how the body's defenses operates and why we don't all suffer from severe autoimmune diseases," stated the head of the award panel.

This team's research address a core question: How does the defense system protect us from countless invaders while leaving our own tissues unharmed?

Our immune system uses immune cells that search for indicators of disease, including viruses and germs it has not met before.

These cells employ sensors—called receptors—that are produced by chance in countless combinations.

This gives the defense network the capacity to combat a wide array of threats, but the unpredictability of the mechanism inevitably produces white blood cells that can target the body.

Security Guards of the Body

Researchers earlier understood that some of these problematic white blood cells were destroyed in the thymus—where white blood cells mature.

This year's Nobel Prize recognizes the discovery of T-reg cells—described as the body's "security guards"—which travel through the body to disarm other immune cells that attack the healthy cells.

We know that this mechanism malfunctions in self-attack conditions such as juvenile diabetes, multiple sclerosis, and RA.

The Nobel panel added, "The discoveries have laid the foundation for a new field of research and accelerated the development of innovative therapies, for example for cancer and immune disorders."

Regarding malignancies, T-regs prevent the system from attacking the growth, so research are focused on lowering their quantity.

For autoimmune diseases, experiments are exploring increasing regulatory T-cells so the organism is no longer under attack. A similar method could also be useful in reducing the chances of transplanted organ failure.

Innovative Studies

Professor Shimon Sakaguchi, from Osaka University, conducted experiments on rodents that had their immune gland removed, leading to self-attack conditions.

He showed that injecting immune cells from other mice could stop the disease—implying there was a system for preventing immune cells from harming the host.

Dr. Brunkow, affiliated with the a research center in Seattle, and Fred Ramsdell, now at Sonoma Biotherapeutics in a California city, were investigating an genetic autoimmune disease in mice and humans that resulted in the identification of a gene critical for how regulatory T-cells operate.

"The pioneering work has revealed how the body's defenses is controlled by T-reg cells, stopping it from accidentally attacking the healthy cells," said a leading physiology expert.

"This work is a striking illustration of how fundamental biological study can have broad implications for public health."