2013: Thomas Südhof, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine

Thomas Südhof, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, shared with James

Rothman of Yale University and Randy Schekman of UC Berkeley, "for their
discoveries of machinery regulating vesicle traffic, a major transport system in our
cells."

Psychiatric and neurologic disorders such as schizophrenia, autism, and Parkinson's

disease are all at least partially caused by a defect in how brain cells (neurons)
communicate with each other.  Dr. Sudhof’s work using laboratory mice over the past
few decades has culminated in our present understanding of how normal neurons
function.

Understanding what is normal allows scientists to understand what is abnormal,

which will eventually lead to therapies for these disorders.

Read more: Thomas Südhof Wins Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine >>

2006: Andrew Fire, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine

Andrew Fire, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine; shared with Craig Mello of
the University of Massachusetts Medical School, for recognizing that certain RNA
molecules can be used to turn off specific genes in animal cells.

Fire and Mello are part of a team of researchers credited with recognizing that
certain RNA molecules can be used to turn off specific genes in animal cells. The
discovery marked the first time biologists were able to selectively "silence" the voice
of one gene in the cacophony of the tens of thousands that give a cell its marching
orders from development to death. Their description of the process, called RNA
interference or RNAi, opened up previously inaccessible areas of research.

Read more: Andrew Fire Shares Nobel Prize for Discovering How Double-Stranded
RNA