- Title: Two scientists from U.S. and one from Britain share Nobel Medicine Prize
- Date: 7th October 2019
- Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (English) MEMBER OF THE NOBEL ASSEMBLY, PROFESSOR RANDALL JOHNSON, SAYING: "Oxygen is essential for life and is used by virtually all animal cells in order to convert food to useable energy. However, the amount of oxygen available to cells, tissues and animals themselves can vary greatly. This prize is for three physician-scientists who found the molecular switch that regulates how our cells adapt when oxygen levels drop." GRAPHICS ON SCREEN AS JOHNSON EXPLAINS SCIENCE BEHIND THE PRIZE (SOUNDBITE) (English) MEMBER OF THE NOBEL ASSEMBLY, PROFESSOR RANDALL JOHNSON, SAYING: "This year's three laureates have greatly expanded our knowledge of how physiological response makes life possible." GRAPHICS ON SCREEN AS JOHNSON EXPLAINS THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE PRIZE (SOUNDBITE) (English) SECRETARY OF THE NOBEL ASSEMBLY, THOMAS PERLMANN, SAYING: "I'm happy to say that I was able to reach all three of them which sometimes is a little bit difficult but that was successful. I should say that the last one I called was William Kaelin who we didn't have the number to, so this morning I was able to reach first his sister, who I woke up, and she gave me two phone numbers. I called the first one and I asked if I was speaking to Bill Kaelin. "No," the person said and it was the wrong number but the other phone number was correct so I was able to reach Bill Kaelin. He was really happy, almost speechless. And the other two, the most awake person I think was Sir Peter Ratcliffe who was actually in his office, but also Gregg Semenza I think was asleep and was extremely happy to hear the news and happy to, actually they mentioned also that they were happy to share the prize with each other in this trio." CAMERA OPERATORS
- Embargoed: 21st October 2019 13:28
- Keywords: Nobel medicine William Kaelin Sir Peter Ratcliffe Gregg Semenza oxygen
- Location: STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN
- City: STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN
- Country: Sweden
- Topics: Arts / Culture / Entertainment
- Reuters ID: LVA003B03LC93
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Two scientists from the United States and one from Britain won the 2019 Nobel Medicine Prize on Monday (October 7) for finding how cells adapt to fluctuating oxygen levels, paving the way for new strategies to fight diseases such as anaemia and cancer.
The Nobel award-giving body said U.S.-born researchers William Kaelin and Gregg Semenza shared the prize equally with Peter Ratcliffe, who was born in Britain.
"The seminal discoveries by this year's Nobel laureates revealed the mechanism for one of life's most essential adaptive processes," the Nobel Assembly at Sweden's Karolinska Institute said in a statement on awarding the prize of 9 million Swedish crowns (913,000 U.S. dollar).
Their research established the basis for the understanding of how oxygen levels affect cellular metabolism and physiological functions, the institute said.
Medicine is the first of the Nobel Prizes awarded each year. The prizes for achievements in science, peace and literature have been awarded since 1901 and were created in the will of dynamite inventor and businessman Alfred Nobel.
(Production: Bjorn Lockstrom, Ilze Filks) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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