he Nobel Prize 2025: Unraveling the Immune System's 'Security Guards' - Regulatory T Cells
UPSC Relevance
Prelims: General Science (Biology - Human Immune System, T-cells, Genes, Autoimmune diseases); Current events of national and international importance (Nobel Prizes).
Mains:
General Studies Paper 3 (S&T): Science and Technology- developments and their applications and effects in everyday life; Awareness in the fields of Bio-technology; Achievements of Indians in science & technology (while the prize is not for Indians, understanding the science is important).
Key Highlights from the News
The 2025 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded to three scientists: Mary Branko, Fred Ramsdell (USA), and Shimon Sakaguchi (Japan). 🔬
The award recognized their discovery of a crucial mechanism that protects the body's immune system from attacking its own cells, known as "peripheral immune tolerance."
They discovered Regulatory T cells (Tregs), described as the "security guards" of our immune system, and the Foxp3 gene that controls their function.
Significance of this discovery:
It paved the way for developing new treatment methods for autoimmune diseases, cancer, and organ transplantation.
This discovery fundamentally changed scientific understanding of the immune system.
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