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The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine has been granted for transformative discoveries that clarify how the immune system attacks dangerous infections while protecting the body's own cells.

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

The research identified unique "sentinels" within the immune system that remove malfunctioning immune cells capable of attacking the body.

The discoveries are now enabling new therapies for immune disorders and malignancies.

These winners will share a prize fund valued at 11 million SEK.

Crucial Discoveries

"Their research has been decisive for comprehending how the body's defenses operates and why we don't all develop serious autoimmune diseases," stated the chair of the award panel.

This team's studies explain a fundamental question: In what way does the defense system defend us from countless infections while keeping our healthy cells unharmed?

The immune system employs white blood cells that search for signs of disease, even viruses and germs it has not met before.

These cells employ sensors—called receptors—that are produced randomly in a vast number of variations.

That gives the defense network the ability to combat a broad range of threats, but the unpredictability of the process unavoidably creates immune cells that may attack the host.

Protectors of the Body

Researchers previously knew that some of these problematic defense cells were destroyed in the immune organ—where immune cells mature.

The latest Nobel Prize honors the identification of T-reg cells—known as the immune system's "peacekeepers"—which travel through the system to neutralize any defenders that assault the body's own tissues.

We know that this process fails in self-attack conditions such as juvenile diabetes, multiple sclerosis, and rheumatoid arthritis.

A prize committee stated, "The discoveries have established a novel area of research and spurred the development of new therapies, for instance for tumors and autoimmune diseases."

Regarding malignancies, regulatory T-cells block the body from fighting the growth, so research are aimed at reducing their numbers.

For autoimmune diseases, experiments are testing boosting T-reg cells so the organism is no longer being harmed. A similar approach could also be effective in minimizing the risks of organ transplant rejection.

Pioneering Experiments

Professor Shimon Sakaguchi, of Osaka University, conducted experiments on rodents that had their thymus removed, leading to autoimmune disease.

He showed that introducing defense cells from healthy animals could stop the disease—suggesting there was a system for preventing immune cells from harming the host.

Mary Brunkow, affiliated with the Institute for Systems Biology in Seattle, and Fred Ramsdell, currently at Sonoma Biotherapeutics in a California city, were studying an inherited immune disorder in rodents and people that led to the discovery of a genetic factor vital for the way T-regs operate.

"The groundbreaking work has revealed how the body's defenses is controlled by T-reg cells, stopping it from mistakenly targeting the healthy cells," said a prominent biological science specialist.

"This research is a remarkable example of how fundamental biological study can have broad consequences for public health."