Scientists David Baker, Demis Hassabis, and John M. Jumper have been awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry this year in recognition of their significant contributions to understanding protein structure, computational protein design, and the body’s immune response.
Their discoveries are expected to open new horizons in various fields, including medicine, biotechnology, and organic chemistry.
The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced the names of this year’s Nobel laureates in Chemistry from Stockholm, Sweden, at 3:45 PM Bangladesh time on Wednesday.
The prize is awarded in two parts. The first half goes to Professor David Baker from the University of Washington in Seattle, USA, for his work on computer-based protein design.
The second half is jointly awarded to Google DeepMind scientists Demis Hassabis and John M. Jumper for developing an artificial intelligence (AI) model that predicts complex protein structures.
David Baker has successfully created new types of protein structures that were long considered impossible. This discovery could revolutionize the fields of biology and medicine. Meanwhile, the work of Demis Hassabis and John M. Jumper has enabled the prediction of complex three-dimensional protein structures, solving a problem that has remained unresolved for scientists for 50 years. Their AI model, AlphaFold, has achieved unprecedented success in predicting protein structures.
The Nobel laureates will receive a Nobel medal, a certificate, and a total of 11 million Swedish Krona, equivalent to approximately 1.1 crore Swedish Krona. The current market value of this amount is around 1,067,000 USD, which is approximately 12.8 crore Bangladeshi Taka. David Baker will receive half of the prize, amounting to 5.5 million Swedish Krona, while the remaining 5.5 million Swedish Krona will be divided between the other two recipients.