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The Nobel Prize in medical science has been awarded for transformative discoveries that illuminate how the body's defense network targets harmful infections while sparing the body's own cells.

A trio of esteemed researchers—from Japan Prof. Sakaguchi and American experts Mary Brunkow and Dr. Ramsdell—share this honor.

The research identified unique "security guards" within the defense system that eliminate malfunctioning immune cells capable of attacking the body.

These discoveries are now enabling innovative treatments for autoimmune diseases and malignancies.

These laureates will share a prize fund worth 11 million Swedish kronor.

Crucial Discoveries

"Their work has been essential for understanding how the body's defenses functions and the reason we don't all suffer from severe autoimmune diseases," commented the head of the Nobel Committee.

The trio's studies explain a core mystery: How does the defense system protect us from countless invaders while keeping our own tissues unharmed?

The immune system employs white blood cells that search for signs of disease, including viruses and germs it has never encountered.

These cells utilize sensors—called recognition units—that are produced by chance in countless combinations.

That provides the defense network the capacity to combat a wide array of threats, but the unpredictability of the process inevitably produces immune cells that may target the body.

Protectors of the Immune System

Researchers earlier understood that some of these harmful defense cells were destroyed in the immune organ—the site where white blood cells develop.

The latest Nobel Prize recognizes the discovery of T-reg cells—described as the immune system's "peacekeepers"—which patrol the system to disarm other immune cells that attack the healthy cells.

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

The prize committee stated, "The findings have laid the foundation for a new field of investigation and accelerated the creation of new therapies, for instance for tumors and autoimmune diseases."

In malignancies, regulatory T-cells block the system from attacking the growth, so research are aimed at lowering their numbers.

For self-attack disorders, trials are testing boosting T-reg cells so the body is not being harmed. A similar approach could also be effective in reducing the chances of transplanted organ failure.

Pioneering Experiments

Professor Shimon Sakaguchi, of Osaka University, performed experiments on rodents that had their immune gland removed, leading to self-attack conditions.

The researcher showed that introducing defense cells from other mice could prevent the illness—suggesting there was a system for preventing defenders from attacking the host.

Dr. Brunkow, from the a research center in a US city, and Fred Ramsdell, currently at a biotech firm in San Francisco, were investigating an inherited autoimmune disease in rodents and humans that resulted in the identification of a gene vital for the way T-regs operate.

"The pioneering work has revealed how the body's defenses is controlled by regulatory T cells, preventing it from mistakenly attacking the healthy cells," said a leading physiology specialist.

"The research is a striking example of how basic physiological study can have broad implications for public health."