October 7, 2009

comments on the announcement of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2009

The prize was shared between Dr Venkatraman Ramakrishnan, a research fellow at Trinity College Cambridge, Thomas Steitz from Yale University, and Ada Yonath from the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, for work on mapping the structure of the ribosome, the protein-manufacturing centre of the cell.

Lord Drayson, Science Minister, said:

“Congratulations to Dr Ramakrishnan! Venki’s work on the ribosome at the MRC’s world-famous Laboratory of Molecular Biology could prove as relevant to human health as the discovery of penicillin itself. Venki was lured to the UK from America more than a decade ago, as a direct result of the long-term stable support for basic science provided on these shores. By relentlessly exploring the arrangement of atoms in the ribosome, he and his team have been able to produce its structure, now helping in the design of antibiotics and laying the foundations of synthetic biology. The LMB’s amazing history of discovery is going from strength to strength. It will shortly move in to a state-of-the art facility befitting its research.”

Philip Diamond, Associate Director at the Institute of Physics in the UK, said:

“The honour bestowed upon Ramakrishnan today is testament to the foundational and inter-disciplinary nature of physics. Discoveries of the past few centuries have invariably been grounded in technological advances made possible through physics research – from understanding DNA and medical imaging, to modelling climate change or understanding the first few seconds after the Big Bang, physics is the underpinning discipline.”

Sir Leszek Borysiewicz, Medical Research Council Chief Executive, said:

“We are absolutely delighted that Dr Ramakrishnan’s work has been recognised with the 2009 Nobel Prize for Chemistry. Venki’s award is the Medical Research Council’s 29th Nobel Prize and is a reflection of the excellent work that our scientists do. The MRC is committed to long-term support of the difficult areas of basic science as exemplified by Venki’s success. It is only on the back of such discoveries that we can continue to drive translation into benefits for human health.”

Dr Venkatraman Ramakrishnan of the Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology, said:

“I have to say that I am deeply indebted to all of the brilliant associates, students and post docs who worked in my lab as science is a highly collaborative enterprise. The MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology and the University of Utah supported this work and the collegiate atmosphere there made it all possible. The idea of supporting long term basic research like that at LMB does lead to breakthroughs, the ribosome is already starting to show its medical importance.”

Further information from the MRC: Dr Venkatraman Ramakrishnan of the Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology has won the 2009 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for studies of the structure and function of the ribosome. Dr Ramakrishnan shares the prize with Thomas A. Steitz of Yale University and Ada E. Yonath of the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel. Ribosomes produce proteins, which in turn control the chemistry in all living organisms. The ribosome is found in all living cells, including those of bacteria. Human and bacterial ribosomes are slightly different, making the ribosome a good target for antibiotic therapy that works by blocking the bacterium’s ability to make the proteins it needs to function. Ramakrishnan, Steitz and Yonath demonstrated what the ribosome looks like and how it functions at an atomic level using a visualisation method called X-ray crystallography to map the position of each of the hundreds of thousands of atoms that make up the ribosome. Dr Ramakrishnan’s basic research on the arrangement of atoms in the ribosome has allowed his team not only to gain detailed knowledge of how it contributes to protein production but also to see directly how antibiotics bind to specific pockets in the ribosome structure. This could help researchers to design antibiotics to treat people who are infected with a bacterium that has developed antibiotic resistance, for example some of the strains of bacteria that cause tuberculosis. Better targeting of the bacterial ribosome should also help to avoid negative effects on human cells thereby reducing the side effects of taking antibiotics.