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Nobel Prize for Medicine awarded to three scientists for their work in optogenetics

Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann and Georg Nagel were selected as the winners

Karl Deisseroth AP Photo/ Eugene Hoshiko

Karl Deisseroth

© AP Photo/ Eugene Hoshiko

STOCKHOLM, October 5. /TASS/. The 2026 Nobel Prize for Medicine has been awarded to Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann and Georg Nagel, the Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institute announced on Monday.

The three scientists were selected as the winners for their work ‘concerning light-gated ion channels and optogenetics’, the Assembly explained in a press release.

"The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2026 is awarded for optogenetics - a method that makes it possible to show how nerve cells shape memories, feelings and behaviors in the living brain. Peter Hegemann and Georg Nagel discovered a remarkable protein, channelrhodopsin, in a single-celled alga. Karl Deisseroth transformed the protein into a light-controlled switch for nerve cells. The Laureates have laid the foundation of a new era in neuroscience," the press release reads.

According to Per Svenningsson, Chair of the Nobel Committee for Physiology or Medicine, "optogenetics provides opportunities for mapping the brain in a way that we could once only dream of."

Optogenetics, a groundbreaking method for controlling nerve signals with light, has rapidly gained global impact and fundamentally altered our understanding of the brain, the Assembly continued. "Using optogenetics, researchers have been able to reveal neural circuits governing specific memories, feelings, and behaviors relevant for neurological and psychiatric disorders. In clinical medicine, researchers are using the method in attempts to restore sight in people with visual impairment. Every day brings new discoveries, helping to solve one of humanity’s great mysteries: how our incredible brain works," it concluded.

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