Brunkov, Ramsdell, and Sakaguchi awarded 2025 Nobel Prize in Medicine

The 2025 Nobel Prize in Medicine or Physiology has been awarded to Mary E. Brunkov, Fred Ramsdell, and Shimon Sakaguchi for their pioneering discoveries on peripheral immune tolerance.

• Researchers from the USA and Japan shared the 2025 Nobel Prize in Medicine.
• The 2025 Nobel Prize in Medicine or Physiology has been awarded to Mary E. Brunkov, Fred Ramsdell, and Shimon Sakaguchi for their pioneering discoveries on peripheral immune tolerance.
• Their discovery revealed a fundamental mechanism that prevents the human immune system from attacking its own tissues. Their work has not only transformed our understanding of immune system regulation but also opened new avenues for the treatment of autoimmune diseases, cancer, and transplant rejection.
• Their collaborative research identified regulatory T cells (Tregs)—specific immune cells that act as "guards" to prevent immune cells from mistakenly attacking the body’s own tissues. This discovery revolutionized immunology and disease treatment strategies.

2025 Nobel Prize Winners in Physiology or Medicine

• Mary E. Brunkov - Senior Program Manager, Institute for Systems Biology, Seattle, USA.
• Fred Ramsdell - Scientific Advisor, Sonoma Biotherapeutics, San Francisco, USA.
• Shimon Sakaguchi - Distinguished Professor, Immunology Frontier Research Center, Osaka University, Japan.

Nobel Prize Facts 2025

• Established in 1895 by the will of Alfred Nobel, the Nobel Prize is one of the world’s most prestigious awards, recognizing outstanding contributions in six categories: Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, Literature, Peace, and Economics.
• Famous scientist Alfred Nobel, known as the inventor of dynamite, was born in 1833 in Stockholm (Sweden). When Alfred Nobel was 18 years old, he was sent to the USA to study chemistry. He made a total of 355 inventions throughout his life.
• The Nobel Foundation was established in June 1900, and the first Nobel Prizes were awarded in 1901. Prizes were first announced in Medicine, followed by Physics, Chemistry, Literature, Peace, and Economics.
• In 1968, the sixth prize was created by the Central Bank of Sweden for Economics.

Nobel prizes are awarded annually by:

• Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (Physics, Chemistry, Economics)
• Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institute (Medicine)
• Swedish Academy (Literature)
• Norwegian Nobel Committee (Peace)
• These prizes are presented on 10 December, the anniversary of Nobel’s death, with ceremonies in Stockholm and Oslo. Winners receive a medal, diploma, and cash award.

Other Facts of Nobel Prize 

• Mahatma Gandhi was nominated five times for the Nobel Peace Prize, consecutively in 1937, 1938, and 1939, then again in 1947. The last nomination was in 1948, but he was assassinated just four days later.
• At that time, no Nobel Prize was awarded posthumously.
• The International Committee of the Red Cross has won the Peace Nobel Prize three times, in 1917, 1944, and 1963.
• Among the youngest Nobel laureates is Malala Yousafzai from Pakistan, who shared the prize with India’s Kailash Satyarthi.
• Double Nobel winners include Madame Curie, Linus Pauling, John Bardeen, and Frederick Sanger.
• Two laureates refused to accept their Nobel Prizes: French writer Jean-Paul Sartre, who declined the Literature Prize in 1964, and Vietnamese politician Le Duc Tho, who declined the Peace Prize he was to share in 1973 with US diplomat Henry Kissinger.