Related Nobel Prizes
Prizes related to the 2008 Chemistry Prize
In 2008, Osamu Shimomura, Martin Chalfie and Roger Y. Tsien received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for the discovery and development of the green fluorescent protein (GFP). Find out here about previous Nobel Prizes relevant to their work.
Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2006
Andrew Z. Fire and Craig C. Mello
“for their discovery of RNA interference – gene silencing by double-stranded RNA“
Fire and Mello discovered a new way to silence genes, which could be used to understand the function of genes in living systems.
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Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2003
Paul C. Lauterbur and Peter Mansfield
“for their discoveries concerning magnetic resonance imaging”
Lauterbur and Mansfield captured the ability of atomic nuclei to behave like microscopic magnets to view many of life’s essential functions.
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Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1980
Walter Gilbert and Frederick Sanger
“for their contributions concerning the determination of base sequences in nucleic acids”
Gilbert and Sanger developed different methods to tag and determine the exact sequence of the building blocks in DNA.
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Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1979
Allan M. Cormack and Godfrey N. Hounsfield
“for the development of computer assisted tomography”
CT scans combined X-rays with digital technology to generate three-dimensional views of inner organs and soft tissues.
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Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1972
Christian B. Anfinsen, Stanford Moore and William H. Stein
“for his work on ribonuclease, especially concerning the connection between the amino acid sequence and the biologically active conformation” and “for their contribution to the understanding of the connection between chemical structure and catalytic activity of the active centre of the ribonuclease molecule”
These three researchers showed how the function of a protein is directly related to its amino-acid sequence.
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Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1962
Francis Crick, James Watson, and Maurice Wilkins
“for their discoveries concerning the molecular structure of nucleic acids and its significance for information transfer in living material”
The determination of the double-helix structure of DNA helped explain how genetic information is transferred in living material.
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Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1958
Frederick Sanger
“for his work on the structure of proteins, especially that of insulin”
Sanger was the first to determine the exact order in which the amino acids of a protein molecule are linked together.
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Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1906
Camillo Golgi and Santiago Ramón y Cajal
“in recognition of their work on the structure of the nervous system”
Golgi’s method of silver staining individual nerve and cell structures was instrumental in understanding the makeup and function of nerves.
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Nobel Prize in Physics 1901
Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen
“in recognition of the extraordinary services he has rendered by the discovery of the remarkable rays subsequently named after him”
Röntgen’s mysterious X-rays allowed us to peer inside and see the workings of the human body without surgery.
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First published 8 October 2008.
Nobel Prizes and laureates
Six prizes were awarded for achievements that have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind. The 12 laureates' work and discoveries range from proteins' structures and machine learning to fighting for a world free of nuclear weapons.
See them all presented here.