The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded Monday to Americans Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun for their groundbreaking discovery of microRNA, the Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institute announced.
MicroRNA, tiny pieces of genetic material that alter gene function at the cellular level, could lead to new approaches in treating diseases like cancer, according to the Nobel committee.
“This discovery is proving to be fundamentally important in understanding how organisms develop and function,” said Thomas Perlmann, Secretary-General of the Nobel Committee.
Dr. Claire Fletcher, a lecturer in molecular oncology at Imperial College London, explained the significance of microRNA in medical research. “MicroRNA alters how genes in the cell work,” Fletcher said. “We can take a microRNA that we know alters the activity of a mutated gene and deliver it to cancer cells to stop that gene from having its effect.”
Ambros conducted his prize-winning research at Harvard University and is currently a professor at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. Ruvkun, a professor of genetics at Harvard Medical School, performed his research at Massachusetts General Hospital.
The prize carries a cash award of 11 million Swedish kronor ($1 million) from a bequest left by Alfred Nobel.
This year’s Nobel announcements continue with physics on Tuesday, chemistry on Wednesday, literature on Thursday, and the Peace Prize on Friday. The Economics prize will be announced on October 14.
As researchers continue to explore microRNA’s potential, Fletcher anticipates possible drug treatments approved by regulators within the next five to ten years, opening up new avenues for developing medicines and controlling gene activity in various diseases.
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