http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/04/science/yoshinori-ohsumi-nobel-prize-medicine.html 2016-10-03 12:37:39 Yoshinori Ohsumi Awarded Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine A Japanese cell biologist, Dr. Ohsumi was recognized for his work on autophagy, the process by which cells recycle their content. === Yoshinori Ohsumi, a Japanese cell biologist, was awarded Autophagy, derived from the Greek, means “self-eating.” “This concept emerged during the 1960s, when researchers first observed that the cell could destroy its own contents by enclosing it in membranes, forming sacklike vesicles that were transported to a recycling compartment, called the lysosome Dr. Ohsumi used baker’s yeast to identify genes essential for autophagy, and he went on to examine the underlying mechanisms of the process. “Ohsumi’s discoveries led to a new paradigm in our understanding of how the cell recycles its content,” the Nobel Assembly said. “His discoveries opened the path to understanding the fundamental importance of autophagy in many physiological processes, such as in the adaptation to starvation or response to infection.” Mutations in autophagy genes can cause disease, the assembly said, and the process is involved in several conditions including cancer and neurological disease. Dr. Ohsumi, born in 1945 in Fukuoka, Japan, is a professor at the Tokyo Institute of Technology. William C. Campbell, Satoshi Omura and Five more will be awarded in the days to come: ■ The Nobel Prize in Physics will be announced on Tuesday in Sweden. Read about ■ The Nobel Prize in Chemistry will be announced on Wednesday in Sweden. Read about ■ The Nobel Peace Prize will be announced on Friday in Norway. Read about ■ The Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Science will be announced on Monday, Oct. 10, in Sweden. Read about last year’s winner, ■ The Nobel Prize in Literature will be announced on Thursday, Oct. 13, in Sweden. Read about last year’s winner,