The 2024 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded for groundbreaking work on “Gene regulation by microRNA,” a process discovered by Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun. Their research uncovered how microRNAs, small non-coding RNA molecules, play a crucial role in regulating gene expression in cells. These microRNAs control the translation of messenger RNA into proteins, impacting various biological processes such as development, growth, and cellular differentiation.
The Nobel committee highlighted that this mechanism of gene regulation has been present for hundreds of millions of years and has facilitated the evolution of complex organisms. Ambros and Ruvkun’s work has had profound implications for our understanding of biology and medicine, particularly in areas like cancer, genetic diseases, and developmental disorders.
