Nobel Prize is the top most award given in the world to the researchers who contributed the greatest inventions for humankind. It was started in the year 1900 by the Swedish chemist, Alfred Nobel who was an engineer, industrialist most famously known for the invention of dynamite. He believed that people are capable of helping to improve society through knowledge, science and humanism. He died at the year 1896, signed his last will and left much of his wealth to the establishment of a prize and the subsequent Nobel foundation. His will stated to give the Nobel Prize to persons who have contributed the best invention to the society.
Nobel Prize was awarded in 6 different fields – Physics, Chemistry, Physiology, Literature and Peace. Since 1901, 923 laureate have been awarded.
The Prize will contains Nobel prize diploma, a medal, a financial award of $1.1 million.

NOBEL PRIZE WINNERS FOR PHYSICS

The 2021 Nobel prize in physics was awarded to three scientists, Syukuro Manabe and Klaus Hasselmann and Giorgio Parisi. They were rewarded for ground breaking contributions to the understanding complex physical system. The complex systems are characterized by randomness and disorder and are difficult to understand.

INTRODUCTION

One such complex system is Earth’s climate. Syukuro Manabe is a senior meterologist at Princeton, USA. He demonstrated how increase in levels of carbon-dioxide in the atmosphere led to increased temperatures on the surface of the earth. It laid the foundation for the development of current climate models.

Klaus hasselmann is a professor at Max Planck institute for meteorology, Germany. He created a model that links weather and climate together. His method is to prove the increased temperature in the atmosphere is due to human emissions of carbon-dioxide.

Giorgio Parisi is a professor at Sipinza university, Italy. He discovered hidden patterns in the disordered complex materials. His discoveries are among the important contributions to the theory of complex systems.

ABOUT NOVEL FINDING:

Due to the emission of carbon-dioxide by humans to the atmosphere, there is an increase of heat energy in the earth. In 1950s and 1960s, it was found by Syukuro manabe and now he is awarded. The greenhouse effect – sunlight that hits earth is reflected back into the space, while the rest becomes heat. Greenhouse gases prevent heat from escaping into space, warming the planet. With help of mathematical model, he calculated components like, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen and other components that are present in the atmosphere, how much they are found in the atmosphere and What will happen if there is increase in any one of the component and predicted the results. This model was first identified by Syukuro manabe. In this finding, he concluded that there is a because of carbon-dioxide there is increase in heat temperature in the earth’s atmosphere. Twice the increase of carbon-dioxide, then the temperature rises by 2degree/Celsius approximately.

In the 1970s, Hasselmann worked on fluid dynamics. He found equation for waves in water, and did research in california about the movement of waves in ocean water. He studied about the link between the weather and the climate. With the help of computer climate models, he found that the increase in carbon-dioxide in the earth’s atmosphere is mainly due to the humans. He concludes, if carbon-dioxide gets lower than normal, then earth gets freezed. So, the carbon-dioxide emission should be controlled.

Georgio Parisi worked on the complex systems. With the help of Statistics mechanics, the liquid and various gas molecules movements can be studied. With the help of spin glass, he predicted the probability of movements of direction of atoms or molecules.

NOBEL PRIZE WINNERS FOR PHYSIOLOGY AND MEDICINE

CONTEXT:

US Scientists David Julius and Ardem Patapoutian have been awarded the Nobel prize in medicine or physiology 2021 for their discovery on the receptors that are responsible for temperature and touch that enures us to sense heat, cold and touch.

ABOUT THE WINNERS :

Dr.David Julius (Age-66) was born in 1955 in New York. He is a professor and chairman of the department of  physiology at the University of California, San Francisco.

Dr.Ardem Patapoutian (Age-54) was born in 1967 in Beirut. He is a professor at Scripps research in La Jolla, Calif.

ABOUT THEIR DISCOVERIES :

Human beings are well known to possess five senses through which they sense and experience the whole world around them. But the internal mechanisms of how the human body identifies and responds to those five senses – light , sound , smell , taste and touch is very fairly understood. This increased the curiosity among scientists until David Julius and Ardem Patapoutian, discovered the mechanism through which our nervous system responds to a particular sense ( hot , cold or sense of touch ) for which this duo has been awarded Nobel prize in 2021 for physiology or medicine.

Based on the previous research that concluded how different types of nerve cells react to external stimuli, Julius and Patapoutian were very curious to know the proteins involved in signalling our nerve cells to respond to those external stimuli such as touch and temperature either hot or cold.

Julius noticed the studies from Hungary who found that Capsaicin, a natural chemical found in chilli peppers activated a subgroup of neurons to create a burning sensation which we may have feel when we eat too spicy foods, but the mechanism behind it was unknown.

In 1997, Julius and his colleagues screened millions of DNA fragments in sensory neurons that were known to interact with capsaicin. So after few weeks they found the gene encoding the protein receptor through which capsaicin interacts with neurons . Later they named it as TRPV1. This TRPV1 channel is normally closed but it gets opened when our body is exposed to capsaicin, high temperature ,or similar chemicals. When opened +vely charged ions flow into the nerve cells and we feel pain as a result of opening of this particular channel.

Followed by this , Julius in collaboration with Patapoutian turn to work on cold by moving away from hot. The duo used active chemical in mint or menthol to get the chilling sensation and identified a protein named TRPM8 , the first receptor that senses cold.

Meanwhile, Patapoutian was busy with his working on the another sense touch. Patapoutian with his collaborators worked on a mouse cell line . They observed that when the cells of the mouse were poked it produced an electrical signal that was generated by the protein receptor but they still had no idea on the receptor and the gene that encode it. The team screened 71 canditate genes and had no satisfying results and on their 72 nd try they found a touch receptor coding genes which they named as piezo1 and piezo2 . These piezo channels responds to mechanical force or pressure .when the pressure is given ion channels open which then sends signals to the nerve.

This research was a major breakthrough in the field of physiology.

Nobel prize winners for chemistry 2021

Asymmetric organocatalysis a powerful tool
Constructing molecules is the most hardest work . Benjamin List and David MacMillan are awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2021 for their development of a Powerful Improved tool for molecular Development-Organocatalysis.

Many research field and companies are dependent on the field of chemistry to develop molecules that are long lasting or stop the spreading of certain disease . The development of asymmetric organocatalysts requires catalysts which in a chemical reaction regulates without becoming part of the final product. Human body contains around thousands of catalysts in the mode of enzymes, which helps the molecules that are must needed for the welfare of the human health.
Without knowing each other Benjamin List and David MacMillan , developed asymmetric organocatalysis which is made up of organic molecules.

Organic catalysts have a balanced structure of carbon atoms which means any chemical group that is more effective can be attached to these carbon atoms. These Chemical group has elements such as
– oxygen,
-nitrogen,
-sulphur or
-phosphorus and
also other non metals.
These catalyst are not harmful to environment and they are affordable .

When molecules are being constructed due to asymmetric catalysis most of the time two different molecules are resulted, the best example are our hands which are mirror image of each other’s . But only one of the resultant is functional in drug devolving.
How does it work?
Organocatalysts bind to the necessary reacting molecules to give products that are more reactive than the substrate molecules . Because of the chiral property , the catalyst transfers its handedness ( to choose which of the resultant product to use more often) to the substrate, controlling which side of the intermediate can react further.
David list work on 2000
List found that proline a amino acid as a micro-aldolase, an enzyme mimic that combines the amino group and carboxylic acid group. In the aldol reaction, proline binds to the ketone, forming an unsaturated secondary amine intermediate that is more reactive than the ketone itself. Proline’s handedness then infuses the reaction with asymmetry by only allowing the aldehyde to approach in one position.
MacMillan’s work on 2000
The phenylalanine derivative from MacMillan’s work reacts with the unsaturated aldehyde to form an iminium ion, whose lowest unoccupied molecular orbital energy is lower than that of the aldehyde – again making it more reactive. As in the incase of List’s enamine catalysis, the catalyst attaches itself to the substrate with a reversible covalent bond, which allows it to transfer its chirality onto the reagents.
Uses of this finding in medicine field
• Antimalarial and other ant parasitic agents.
• Neuroprotectors.
• Antiviral agents.
• Antitumor agents.
• Antipyretic agents.
• Other applications.
• Pharmaceutical industrial scale.
In this way, Organocatalysts are bringing the greatest benefit to humankind.

By students of biotechnology,

Senolin James.J (2018-2023)

Mohana Sundari.P (2018-2023)

Varshini.R (2018-2023)

Anantha Bhairavi.G(2019-2024)

Bala Monika.G (2019-2024)