2025 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine awarded
The 2025 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine has been awarded jointly to Mary E. Brunkow, Fred Ramsdell, and Shimon Sakaguchi for their discoveries concerning peripheral immune tolerance.
Awarded Work
Their research elucidated how the immune system prevents attacks on the body’s own tissues—specifically, by identifying and understanding the function of regulatory T cells, sometimes called the immune system’s “security guards,” which keep immune responses in check. These discoveries helped lay the groundwork for new therapies targeting autoimmune diseases, cancer, and have implications for safe organ transplantation.
Scientific and Medical Impact
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Their work revealed that the immune system must be actively regulated to avoid self-destruction and that a distinct group of cells (regulatory T cells) perform this critical task.
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Malfunction of these cells can lead to autoimmune diseases, while their enhanced function may promote immune tolerance in therapeutic contexts.
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This foundational research has catalyzed new treatment approaches for cancer, autoimmunity, and transplant rejection.
Recipients
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Mary E. Brunkow: Institute for Systems Biology, Seattle, USA
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Fred Ramsdell: Sonoma Biotherapeutics, San Francisco, USA
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Shimon Sakaguchi: Osaka University, Japan
The prize, including 11 million Swedish crowns (about $1.2 million) and gold medals, will be presented by the King of Sweden later this year.
