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

A trio of renowned researchers—from Japan Shimon Sakaguchi and American scientists Dr. Brunkow and Fred Ramsdell—share this accolade.

The work uncovered specialized "sentinels" within the defense system that eliminate rogue immune cells capable of harming the organism.

The discoveries are now paving the way for new treatments for immune disorders and malignancies.

The winners will divide a monetary award valued at 11 million Swedish kronor.

Decisive Findings

"The research has been decisive for understanding how the body's defenses functions and why we do not all suffer from serious self-attack conditions," commented the head of the award panel.

The trio's research address a fundamental mystery: In what way does the defense system defend us from countless infections while keeping our healthy cells intact?

Our immune system uses immune cells that scan for signs of disease, including viruses and bacteria it has not met before.

Such cells utilize sensors—known as recognition units—that are produced by chance in a vast number of combinations.

This gives the immune system the ability to combat a broad range of invaders, but the randomness of the mechanism unavoidably produces immune cells that may target the host.

Protectors of the Body

Researchers earlier understood that some of these problematic defense cells were eliminated in the thymus—where white blood cells develop.

The latest award recognizes the identification of T-reg cells—known as the body's "security guards"—which patrol the body to neutralize other immune cells that assault the body's own tissues.

It is known that this mechanism fails in autoimmune diseases such as type-1 diabetes, MS, and RA.

A prize committee added, "These findings have established a new field of investigation and accelerated the development of new therapies, for example for tumors and immune disorders."

In malignancies, regulatory T-cells prevent the body from fighting the growth, so research are focused on lowering their quantity.

For autoimmune diseases, trials are testing boosting regulatory T-cells so the organism is not under attack. A comparable approach could also be useful in reducing the chances of organ transplant failure.

Pioneering Studies

Prof Sakaguchi, of a Japanese institution, performed experiments on rodents that had their thymus extracted, leading to autoimmune disease.

He demonstrated that injecting immune cells from other animals could prevent the disease—implying there was a mechanism for preventing immune cells from harming the host.

Mary Brunkow, affiliated with the a research center in Seattle, and Dr. Ramsdell, now at a biotech firm in San Francisco, were studying an genetic immune disorder in rodents and people that resulted in the discovery of a genetic factor critical for how regulatory T-cells function.

"The pioneering research has uncovered how the body's defenses is controlled by T-reg cells, stopping it from accidentally targeting the body's own tissues," commented a leading biological science specialist.

"This research is a striking example of how fundamental physiological study can have far-reaching consequences for public health."