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The Nobel Prize in medical science has been awarded for transformative discoveries that clarify how the immune system targets dangerous infections while sparing the body's own cells.

A trio of renowned researchers—Japan's Shimon Sakaguchi and US experts Mary Brunkow and Dr. Ramsdell—share this honor.

The research identified unique "security guards" within the immune system that remove rogue defense cells capable of attacking the organism.

The findings are now paving the way for innovative therapies for autoimmune diseases and cancer.

The laureates will divide a prize fund worth 11m Swedish kronor.

Decisive Discoveries

"The research has been essential for comprehending how the immune system operates and why we don't all suffer from severe autoimmune diseases," commented the head of the award panel.

The trio's studies explain a core question: In what way does the immune system protect us from countless invaders while leaving our healthy cells intact?

The immune system employs immune cells that search for signs of infection, including pathogens and bacteria it has never encountered.

These cells utilize sensors—called receptors—that are generated by chance in countless combinations.

This provides the defense network the ability to combat a broad range of threats, but the unpredictability of the process inevitably produces white blood cells that can target the host.

Protectors of the Body

Researchers earlier knew that some of these harmful white blood cells were eliminated in the immune organ—the site where white blood cells mature.

This year's award honors the discovery of regulatory T-cells—described as the body's "security guards"—which patrol the body to disarm other defenders that assault the healthy cells.

We know that this mechanism fails in self-attack conditions such as juvenile diabetes, MS, and RA.

The Nobel panel stated, "The findings have laid the foundation for a novel area of research and spurred the creation of innovative treatments, for example for cancer and immune disorders."

Regarding malignancies, T-regs prevent the system from fighting the tumor, so studies are aimed at reducing their numbers.

For autoimmune diseases, trials are exploring boosting T-reg cells so the body is no longer under attack. A similar method could also be effective in reducing the risks of organ transplant rejection.

Pioneering Studies

Professor Shimon Sakaguchi, of Osaka University, performed tests on mice that had their immune gland extracted, causing autoimmune disease.

He demonstrated that injecting defense cells from other mice could prevent the disease—suggesting there was a system for blocking defenders from harming the host.

Dr. Brunkow, from the a research center in Seattle, and Fred Ramsdell, now at Sonoma Biotherapeutics in a California city, were studying an inherited immune disorder in rodents and people that resulted in the identification of a genetic factor vital for the way regulatory T-cells function.

"The pioneering research has revealed how the immune system is kept in check by T-reg cells, preventing it from accidentally attacking the healthy cells," commented a leading physiology expert.

"The work is a remarkable example of how fundamental biological research can have broad implications for public health."