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The prestigious award in Physiology or Medicine was awarded for transformative findings that clarify how the body's defense network attacks harmful pathogens while protecting the body's own cells.

A trio of esteemed scientists—Japan's Prof. Sakaguchi and US experts Dr. Brunkow and Fred Ramsdell—received this honor.

Their work uncovered unique "sentinels" within the defense system that remove rogue defense cells capable of harming the body.

The findings are now paving the way for new therapies for immune disorders and cancer.

The laureates will divide a monetary award worth 11 million SEK.

Crucial Findings

"The work has been decisive for understanding how the body's defenses operates and why we do not all develop serious autoimmune diseases," commented the chair of the Nobel Committee.

This team's studies explain a fundamental mystery: How does the defense system defend us from numerous invaders while keeping our healthy cells unharmed?

Our body's protection system uses immune cells that search for signs of disease, even pathogens and germs it has never encountered.

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

That provides the defense network the ability to fight a broad range of invaders, but the randomness of the process unavoidably produces white blood cells that can target the body.

Security Guards of the Body

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

This year's Nobel Prize honors the discovery of regulatory T-cells—described as the immune system's "security guards"—which travel through the body to disarm any defenders that assault the healthy cells.

We know that this mechanism fails in autoimmune diseases such as juvenile diabetes, multiple sclerosis, and rheumatoid arthritis.

The prize committee added, "The discoveries have established a new field of research and accelerated the creation of new therapies, for instance for cancer and autoimmune diseases."

Regarding cancer, T-regs prevent the system from fighting the tumor, so studies are focused on reducing their numbers.

For autoimmune diseases, experiments are exploring boosting regulatory T-cells so the body is not under attack. A comparable approach could also be effective in minimizing the risks of organ transplant rejection.

Pioneering Experiments

Professor Shimon Sakaguchi, from Osaka University, conducted experiments on mice that had their immune gland removed, leading to autoimmune disease.

The researcher demonstrated that introducing immune cells from healthy animals could prevent the disease—implying there was a mechanism for preventing immune cells from attacking the body.

Mary Brunkow, from the a research center in Seattle, and Dr. Ramsdell, currently at a biotech firm in a California city, were studying an inherited autoimmune disease in mice and humans that led to the identification of a gene critical for the way regulatory T-cells operate.

"Their pioneering research has revealed how the body's defenses is controlled by regulatory T cells, stopping it from mistakenly attacking the body's own tissues," commented a prominent physiology specialist.

"The research is a remarkable example of how basic physiological research can have far-reaching consequences for public health."