Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine

The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was established by the will of Alfred Nobel, the Swedish chemist and inventor of dynamite, who died in 1896. Nobel's will stipulated that his fortune be used to create prizes for those who "conferred the greatest benefit on mankind" in physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature, and peace. The prize in physiology or medicine is awarded by the Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, Sweden, following the statutes of the Nobel Foundation.¹

The first prize was awarded in 1901 to Emil von Behring for his work on serum therapy, particularly for the treatment of diphtheria. Since then, the prize has been awarded annually, with a few interruptions during the World Wars. The prize consists of a gold medal, a diploma, and a monetary award, the amount of which varies based on the Nobel Foundation's investments.²

The selection process is rigorous and confidential. Nominations are solicited from qualified individuals, including previous laureates, professors of medicine at Scandinavian universities, and members of the Nobel Assembly. Nominations must be submitted by January 31 of the award year. The Nobel Committee, composed of five members elected by the Nobel Assembly, evaluates the nominations and prepares a shortlist. The final decision is made by the Nobel Assembly, which votes in October. The prize is awarded on December 10, the anniversary of Alfred Nobel's death.³

Nominations are kept secret for 50 years, and only those who are nominated are considered. The prize can be shared by up to three laureates, and it is possible for the prize to be withheld if no suitable candidate is found, though this has happened only a few times, most recently in 1918 and 1921.⁴

Many laureates have made epoch-making discoveries. In 1901, Emil von Behring was recognized for serum therapy. In 1923, Frederick Banting and John Macleod won for the discovery of insulin. In 1945, Alexander Fleming, Ernst Chain, and Howard Florey were honored for penicillin. In 1953, Hans Krebs won for the citric acid cycle, and in 1962, Francis Crick, James Watson, and Maurice Wilkins received the prize for the double helix structure of DNA.⁵

More recent prizes include the 2020 award to Harvey Alter, Michael Houghton, and Charles Rice for the discovery of the hepatitis C virus, and the 2023 award to Katalin Karikó and Drew Weissman for their work on mRNA vaccines, which proved crucial in the COVID-19 pandemic.⁶

Several lesser-known facts enrich the prize's history. In 1964, the laureate in physiology or medicine was the biochemist Konrad Bloch, but the prize was actually declined by the Soviet scientist Alexander Oparin, who was not selected; the decline refers to the 1964 prize being declined by the laureate? Actually, the only person to decline the prize in this category was the German biochemist Gerhard Domagk in 1939, who was forced by the Nazi regime to decline, but he later received the diploma and medal in 1947.⁷

The prize has been awarded to a father and son: Arthur Kornberg (1959) and his son Roger Kornberg (2006, in Chemistry). In 1947, Carl Cori and Gerty Cori became the first married couple to share the prize. The youngest laureate was Frederick Banting, who was 32 when he won in 1923; the oldest was Peyton Rous, who was 87 in 1966. The prize has also been awarded for work that was initially controversial, such as the 1949 prize to António Egas Moniz for prefrontal lobotomy, which later fell out of favor.

The prize has faced criticism for overlooking certain discoveries. For example, the discovery of the structure of DNA in 1953 did not include Rosalind Franklin, whose X-ray diffraction images were crucial; she had died before the 1962 award and the Nobel Prize is not awarded posthumously. Similarly, the 2008 prize for the discovery of HIV was shared by Françoise Barré-Sinoussi and Luc Montagnier, but Robert Gallo was excluded, leading to controversy.

Another criticism is that the prize often recognizes a single discovery, ignoring the collaborative nature of modern science. The Nobel Committee has also been accused of bias towards basic research over clinical applications, though recent prizes have recognized translational work, such as the 2015 prize for artemisinin and avermectin.⁸

As of 2023, the prize has been awarded 114 times to 229 laureates. The average age of laureates is around 58. The prize has been shared by multiple laureates in 39 instances. The most common field is genetics and molecular biology. The prize has been awarded to individuals from over 25 countries, with the United States having the most laureates (over 100).²

Only 13 women have won the prize, the first being Gerty Cori in 1947, and the most recent being Katalin Karikó in 2023. The prize has been awarded to a person twice only once: Frederick Sanger won in 1958 and again in 1980 (the second time in Chemistry). No one has won the Physiology or Medicine prize twice.⁵

Nobel Assembly

The body at Karolinska Institutet that awards the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

Karolinska Institutet

A medical university in Stockholm, Sweden, responsible for selecting the laureate.

Serum therapy

A treatment using antibodies from the blood of immune animals or humans, pioneered by Emil von Behring.

mRNA vaccine

A vaccine that uses messenger RNA to instruct cells to produce a protein that triggers an immune response.