New Delhi. The 2019 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine has been awarded to US and British scientists – William Kellyn, Sir Peter Ratcliffe and Gregg Semenza. According to a press release from the Nobel committee, the three scientists were honored for their discoveries of ‘how cells perceive and adapt to oxygen and availability’.
Americans William G. Kelin Jr. and Greig L. Semenza shared the prestigious award with the UK’s Sir Peter J. Ratcliffe on how cells can perceive and adapt to changing oxygen availability.
The fact is that animals need oxygen to convert food into useful energy. While the fundamental importance of oxygen has been recognized for centuries, it is unclear how cells adapt to changes in oxygen levels. Thanks to the ground work of this year’s Nobel Prize winners – they discovered the molecular machinery that regulates the activity of genes in response to different levels of oxygen, the mechanism of one of life’s most essential adaptive processes.
The committee stated, they formed the basis for our understanding of how oxygen levels affect cellular metabolism and physiological function. Their discoveries have paved the way for promising new strategies to fight anemia, cancer and many other diseases. Also, see Nobel Committee Secretary Thomas Peralman, on Monday morning announced the 2019 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm.