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The prestigious award in Physiology or Medicine has been granted for transformative findings that illuminate how the body's defense network attacks dangerous pathogens while protecting the body's own cells.

Three renowned scientists—from Japan Shimon Sakaguchi and American scientists Dr. Brunkow and Dr. Ramsdell—received this honor.

Their work identified specialized "sentinels" within the immune system that eliminate rogue immune cells that could attacking the organism.

The findings are now enabling innovative therapies for immune disorders and malignancies.

The laureates will divide a prize fund worth 11m SEK.

Decisive Findings

"Their research has been essential for comprehending how the body's defenses operates and why we do not all develop severe autoimmune diseases," commented the chair of the Nobel Committee.

The trio's studies address a core mystery: How does the defense system protect us from numerous infections while keeping our healthy cells intact?

Our immune system employs white blood cells that scan for signs of disease, even pathogens and germs it has not met before.

These defenders utilize sensors—called receptors—that are generated by chance in a vast number of variations.

This provides the defense network the capacity to fight a broad range of threats, but the unpredictability of the process inevitably produces immune cells that can attack the host.

Security Guards of the Body

Scientists earlier knew that some of these problematic defense cells were destroyed in the thymus—the site where immune cells develop.

This year's award honors the discovery of T-reg cells—known as the immune system's "security guards"—which patrol the system to disarm other immune cells that attack the body's own tissues.

We know that this mechanism fails in autoimmune diseases such as type-1 diabetes, MS, and rheumatoid arthritis.

The Nobel panel stated, "These findings have established a novel area of research and accelerated the development of new treatments, for example for tumors and autoimmune diseases."

Regarding cancer, regulatory T-cells prevent the system from fighting the tumor, so research are focused on lowering their numbers.

For self-attack disorders, experiments are exploring boosting T-reg cells so the body is not being harmed. A similar approach could also be useful in reducing the chances of transplanted organ rejection.

Pioneering Experiments

Professor Sakaguchi, of Osaka University, performed tests on mice that had their thymus extracted, causing self-attack conditions.

The researcher showed that injecting defense cells from other animals could prevent the illness—suggesting there was a mechanism for blocking defenders from attacking the body.

Dr. Brunkow, affiliated with the Institute for Systems Biology in a US city, and Dr. Ramsdell, currently at Sonoma Biotherapeutics in San Francisco, were investigating an inherited autoimmune disease in mice and humans that led to the identification of a gene vital for the way T-regs function.

"Their pioneering research has revealed how the body's defenses is controlled by T-reg cells, stopping it from accidentally attacking the body's own tissues," commented a prominent biological science specialist.

"This work is a remarkable example of how fundamental biological study can have far-reaching consequences for public health."