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The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine has been granted for transformative findings that illuminate how the body's defense network targets dangerous infections while protecting the body's own cells.

A trio of renowned scientists—Japan's Prof. Sakaguchi and US experts Mary Brunkow and Dr. Ramsdell—received this honor.

Their research uncovered specialized "security guards" within the immune system that eliminate malfunctioning immune cells that could harming the body.

These discoveries are now enabling new treatments for immune disorders and cancer.

The laureates will divide a monetary award worth 11 million Swedish kronor.

Crucial Findings

"Their research has been essential for understanding how the body's defenses functions and why we do not all develop severe self-attack conditions," commented the chair of the Nobel Committee.

The trio's studies explain a core mystery: How does the immune system protect us from numerous invaders while leaving our own tissues intact?

Our body's protection system uses immune cells that scan for signs of disease, including pathogens and bacteria it has never encountered.

Such defenders employ sensors—known as receptors—that are generated by chance in a vast number of combinations.

This provides the defense network the ability to fight a broad range of invaders, but the unpredictability of the process unavoidably produces immune cells that may attack the body.

Security Guards of the Body

Researchers earlier knew that a portion of these problematic defense cells were destroyed in the thymus—where white blood cells mature.

This year's award honors the discovery of regulatory T-cells—described as the immune system's "security guards"—which travel through the body to neutralize any defenders that attack the healthy cells.

We know that this process malfunctions in autoimmune diseases such as type-1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis, and rheumatoid arthritis.

A Nobel panel stated, "These discoveries have laid the foundation for a novel area of research and accelerated the development of innovative treatments, for example for tumors and autoimmune diseases."

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

In autoimmune diseases, experiments are exploring increasing regulatory T-cells so the organism is not being harmed. A similar method could also be effective in reducing the risks of transplanted organ failure.

Innovative Studies

Professor Sakaguchi, of a Japanese institution, performed tests on mice that had their thymus removed, causing self-attack conditions.

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

Dr. Brunkow, from the a research center in a US city, and Dr. Ramsdell, now at a biotech firm in San Francisco, were studying an inherited autoimmune disease in mice and humans that resulted in the identification of a genetic factor vital for how regulatory T-cells function.

"Their groundbreaking work has revealed how the body's defenses is controlled by regulatory T cells, preventing it from mistakenly attacking the healthy cells," commented a prominent biological science expert.

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