This Monday, October 4, 2021, the jury of the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine to David Julius and Ardem Patapoutian for ” their discovery of temperature and touch receptors .” Both have managed to decipher the molecular basis of the detection of cold, heat or mechanical force.
As the statement issued by the Swedish Academy of Sciences points out , thanks to the discoveries of the winners “they have made it possible to understand how heat, cold and mechanical force can generate nerve impulses that allow us to perceive the world around us and adapt to it » .
David Julius
David Julius, born in Brooklyn in 1955, is an American biochemist . He is considered the pioneer in the molecular analysis of receptors.
He received a biology degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1977 and a Ph.D. in biochemistry from the University of Berkeley in 1984. He is currently a professor at the University of California at San Francisco and is a member of the United States National Academy of Sciences .
In regards to his scientific research, he demonstrated the existence of a sensory neuron known as a nociceptor . David Julius defends that nociception is an individual and specific sensory modality.
Throughout his career, he has received numerous accolades, including the Kerr Prize in Basic Research from the American Pain Society (2006) . This 2021 he has been awarded the BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award in the category of Biology and Biomedicine 2020, in addition to the Nobel Prize in Medicine together with Ardem Patapoutian.
Ardem Patapoutian
Ardem Patapoutian, born in Lebanon in 1967, is an Armenian molecular biologist . He studied at the American University of Beirut for a year, then emigrated to the United States fleeing the war.
There he received a Bachelor of Science from the University of California, Los Angeles and a Ph.D. in Biology from the California Institute of Technology in 1996.
During his professional career, he has written numerous academic articles, many of them on the sense of touch . He has been investigating how human beings perceive physical stimuli, such as pressure and temperature.
It is part of different scientific entities such as the National Academy of Sciences of the United States .
This 2021 he has received the Novel Prize in Medicine together with David Julius for his findings in temperature and touch receptors.
