Nobel Medicine Prize 2026: Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann, George Nagel Honoured For Breakthrough In Brain Research
The Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institutet said the scientists’ work laid the foundation for optogenetics, a technique that allows researchers to control the activity of individual nerve cells using light.
The 2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine has been awarded to Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann and Georg Nagel for their discoveries concerning light-gated ion channels and optogenetics, the Nobel Prize announced on Monday.
The Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institutet said the scientists’ work laid the foundation for optogenetics, a technique that allows researchers to control the activity of individual nerve cells using light. The method has become an important tool for studying how the brain functions and how neural circuits influence behaviour.
Hegemann and Nagel’s research on light-sensitive proteins in microorganisms helped establish the scientific basis for controlling cellular activity with light. Deisseroth subsequently played a key role in developing optogenetics as a method for precisely switching neuronal activity on or off.
Optogenetics transforms brain research
The Nobel Committee said optogenetics is now being used in laboratories around the world to explore the mysteries of the brain. The technique has enabled scientists to investigate neural activity with a level of precision that was previously difficult to achieve.
Award begins Nobel announcements
The award to Deisseroth, Hegemann and Nagel marks the beginning of the 2026 Nobel Prize announcements, with the prizes in Physics, Chemistry, Literature, Peace and Economic Sciences to be announced subsequently.
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine is traditionally announced first during Nobel Week.
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