Scientists Mary E. Brunkow, Fred Ramsdell and Shimon Sakaguchi were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2025 for their groundbreaking discoveries concerning peripheral immune tolerance that prevents the immune system from harming the body.
The Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet, on Monday announced the 2025 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in a press release stating that the trio were recognised “for their discoveries concerning peripheral immune tolerance”.
The Prize carries an amount of 11 million Swedish kronor, which will be shared equally between the laureates.
According to the Institute, the laureates identified the immune system’s security guards, regulatory T cells, which prevent immune cells from attacking our own body.
“Their discoveries have been decisive for our understanding of how the immune system functions and why we do not all develop serious autoimmune diseases,” said Olle Kämpe, chair of the Nobel Committee.
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Swimming against the tide in 1995, Sakaguchi made the first key discovery where he showed that the immune system is more complex and discovered a previously unknown class of immune cells, which protect the body from autoimmune diseases.
Further, Mary Brunkow and Fred Ramsdell made the other key discovery in 2001, when they presented the explanation for why a specific mouse strain was particularly vulnerable to autoimmune diseases.
“The laureates’ discoveries launched the field of peripheral tolerance, spurring the development of medical treatments for cancer and autoimmune diseases. This may also lead to more successful transplantations. Several of these treatments are now undergoing clinical trials,” mentioned the press release.
The Nobel Assembly, consisting of 50 professors at Karolinska Institutet, awards the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. Its Nobel Committee evaluates the nominations. Since 1901 the Nobel Prize has been awarded to scientists who have made the most important discoveries for the benefit of humankind.
Born in 1961, Mary E. Brunkow holds a Ph.D. from Princeton University, Princeton, USA and is the Senior Program Manager at the Institute for Systems Biology, Seattle, USA.
Fred Ramsdell, born 1960, holds a Ph.D from the University of California, Los Angeles, USA. He is the Scientific Advisor, Sonoma Biotherapeutics, San Francisco, USA.
Born in 1951, Shimon Sakaguchi – M.D. 1976 and Ph.D. 1983 from Kyoto University, Japan- is a distinguished Professor at the Immunology Frontier Research Center, Osaka University, Japan.
