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This year's Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine has been awarded for transformative findings that clarify how the immune system attacks harmful pathogens while sparing the healthy tissues.

Three renowned scientists—Japan's Prof. Sakaguchi and US scientists Mary Brunkow and Dr. Ramsdell—share this accolade.

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

The discoveries are now paving the way for new therapies for autoimmune diseases and cancer.

These winners will share a prize fund valued at 11m Swedish kronor.

Decisive Findings

"The research has been decisive for comprehending how the immune system functions and why we do not all suffer from serious autoimmune diseases," stated the head of the award panel.

The trio's research address a fundamental mystery: How does the defense system protect us from numerous infections while leaving our healthy cells intact?

Our body's protection system employs white blood cells that scan for signs of infection, including pathogens and germs it has never encountered.

These defenders utilize sensors—called receptors—that are produced randomly in countless variations.

This provides the defense network the ability to combat a wide array of threats, but the randomness of the process unavoidably produces white blood cells that can target the body.

Security Guards of the Body

Scientists previously understood that some of these harmful white blood cells were destroyed in the immune organ—where white blood cells develop.

This year's award honors the identification of T-reg cells—described as the body's "peacekeepers"—which travel through the body to neutralize other defenders that attack the body's own tissues.

We know that this process fails in autoimmune diseases such as juvenile diabetes, multiple sclerosis, and rheumatoid arthritis.

The Nobel panel stated, "The findings have established a novel area of investigation and accelerated the creation of new therapies, for instance for tumors and autoimmune diseases."

Regarding malignancies, T-regs block the body from attacking the tumor, so research are focused on reducing their numbers.

In autoimmune diseases, trials are exploring increasing regulatory T-cells so the body is no longer being harmed. A similar method could also be useful in reducing the chances of transplanted organ rejection.

Pioneering Studies

Professor Shimon Sakaguchi, from Osaka University, conducted tests on mice that had their thymus extracted, causing self-attack conditions.

He demonstrated that introducing immune cells from other animals could stop the disease—implying there was a system for blocking defenders from attacking the host.

Mary Brunkow, from the a research center in Seattle, and Dr. Ramsdell, currently 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 critical for the way regulatory T-cells operate.

"Their groundbreaking research has uncovered how the immune system is kept in check by regulatory T cells, preventing it from mistakenly attacking the body's own tissues," said a leading physiology expert.

"The research is a remarkable example of how fundamental biological research can have far-reaching implications for public health."