Mon Oct 07 12:13:11 UTC 2024: ## 2024 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine Awarded to Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun for MicroRNA Discovery

**STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN** – The Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet today announced that the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine will be awarded to American scientists Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun. The prestigious award recognizes their groundbreaking work on microRNA, a crucial player in post-transcriptional gene regulation.

Ambros and Ruvkun’s research, focused on the development of different cell types, led to the discovery of microRNAs, a new class of small RNA molecules that play a vital role in gene regulation. Their findings unveiled a completely novel principle of gene regulation essential for multicellular organisms, including humans.

MicroRNAs are now known to code for over a thousand different molecules within the human genome, adding a new dimension to our understanding of gene regulation. Their importance has been established in the development and functioning of various organisms.

The Nobel Prize committee emphasized the significance of gene regulation in human health. Dysfunctional gene regulation can lead to serious diseases like cancer, autoimmune disorders, and diabetes.

This year’s Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine is the first of the six Nobel Prizes to be announced. The other five prizes, covering fields like physics, chemistry, literature, peace, and economics, will be unveiled over the next few days.

The Nobel Prizes, considered the most prestigious awards in science, literature, and humanitarian endeavors, are accompanied by a cash prize of 11 million Swedish kronor (approximately $1 million USD). The awards ceremony will take place on December 10th, the anniversary of the death of Alfred Nobel, the Swedish chemist who established the prizes in his will.

This year’s award follows last year’s prize in Physiology or Medicine, which was awarded to Katalin Karikó and Drew Weissman for their discovery of mRNA technology, a key component in the development of effective mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines.

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