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The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was granted for transformative findings that illuminate how the body's defense network attacks harmful pathogens while protecting the healthy tissues.

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

Their work uncovered specialized "security guards" within the immune system that remove malfunctioning immune cells that could harming the organism.

The discoveries are now paving the way for innovative therapies for immune disorders and cancer.

The winners will divide a prize fund valued at 11 million SEK.

Crucial Findings

"Their research has been essential for understanding how the body's defenses operates and the reason we don't all suffer from severe self-attack conditions," stated the chair of the award panel.

The trio's research address a core mystery: How does the defense system protect us from numerous invaders while leaving our own tissues intact?

The immune system uses immune cells that search for indicators of infection, even pathogens and bacteria it has not met before.

Such cells employ detectors—known as receptors—that are generated by chance in countless combinations.

This gives the defense network the ability to combat a wide array of threats, but the randomness of the process unavoidably creates white blood cells that may attack the host.

Protectors of the Immune System

Researchers previously knew that a portion of these harmful white blood cells were eliminated in the immune organ—where immune cells develop.

The latest award recognizes the identification of regulatory T-cells—known as the body's "security guards"—which patrol the system to disarm any immune cells that attack the body's own tissues.

It is known that this process malfunctions in self-attack conditions such as type-1 diabetes, MS, and RA.

The prize committee stated, "The findings have laid the foundation for a new field of research and spurred the creation of innovative treatments, for instance for cancer and immune disorders."

Regarding cancer, T-regs prevent the system from attacking the tumor, so research are focused on lowering their numbers.

In self-attack disorders, experiments are testing increasing T-reg cells so the organism is not being harmed. A comparable approach could also be useful in minimizing the risks of organ transplant failure.

Pioneering Studies

Professor Shimon Sakaguchi, of Osaka University, performed experiments on rodents that had their thymus removed, leading to self-attack conditions.

He demonstrated that injecting immune cells from other mice could stop the disease—implying there was a system for blocking immune cells from harming the body.

Mary Brunkow, affiliated with the a research center in Seattle, and Fred Ramsdell, now at a biotech firm in a California city, were investigating an inherited autoimmune disease in mice and people that resulted in the identification of a genetic factor vital for the way T-regs operate.

"The groundbreaking research has revealed how the body's defenses is controlled by T-reg cells, preventing it from mistakenly targeting the body's own tissues," said a prominent biological science expert.

"The research is a striking example of how basic physiological research can have broad implications for public health."