Nobel prize for discoverers of Microrna: Key to illness and health!

Nobel prize for discoverers of Microrna: Key to illness and health!

The two US scientists Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun were awarded the Medical Nobel Prize in a remarkable use of scientific recognition. Her groundbreaking discovery 30 years ago, which deals with short RNA molecules, not only revolutionized the understanding of genetic processes, but also significant effects on research on diseases such as cancer, diabetes and autoimmune diseases.

Back in the 1980s, as part of biology lessons, students learned that the DNA acts as the carrier of the genetic engineering in the cell nucleus. This DNA consists of genes that serve as blueprints for proteins. A central process describes that a copy of a gene is created in the form of Messenger RNA (mRNA), which leaves the cell inside to produce the corresponding proteins. However, many researchers ignored the rest of the DNA, which is not converted into proteins, and described it as "Junk DNA", in German.

The discovery of the microrna

But Ambros and Ruvkun discovered a fundamental failure in this perspective. They learned that the microrna has a decisive influence on how genes are read. These small RNA molecules can even suppress the formation of critical proteins. In the early 1990s, their research focused on the small, transparent worms of Art Caenorhabditis Elegans, who are considered an ideal model organism in molecular genetics due to their simplicity. Here they realized that microscopically small RNA molecules prevented the production of a certain protein.

This knowledge was originally viewed with skepticism, since many scientists believed that such mechanics do not occur in higher animals. But seven years later, Ruvkuns team also found this micro-RNA in the human genome. This discovery turned out to be revolutionary, since it has now been shown that micrornas are of central importance for numerous important processes in human development and physiology.

Nikolaus Rajewsky in particular, a researcher at the Max-Delbrück Center in Berlin, emphasizes that micrornas are also influencing the complexity of the human brain. Rajewsky, who has known the two winners for over two decades, says: "I am incredibly happy for Ambros and Ruvkun." His own research also convinced him of the relevance of this RNA molecules for medicine.

Practical applications and the future of research

Another prominent researcher, Thomas Thum, who works at the Hannover Medical School, has also recognized the importance of the micrornas. Thum found that certain micrornas can play a role in heart -sick patients by influencing the growth of cardiac muscle cells. On this basis, he developed therapy that aims to block the harmful effects of a misguided microrna in order to improve the quality of life of patients with heart failure.

The importance of these discoveries even extends so far that tumors also use micrornas to spread out in the body. There are also indications that you could play a role in the aging process. The basic mechanism that Ambros and Ruvkun discovered could indeed pave the way for new therapy approaches.

This year's Nobel Prize for Medicine not only underlines the achievements of these two scientists, but also the sustainable influence of their research on the healthcare system. The discovery of micrornas has opened the door to an in -depth understanding of biological processes and could make a decisive contribution to combating serious illnesses in the long term. The world of molecular genetics has been changed through its work, and the knowledge built up will undoubtedly also inspire future generations of scientists.