Israeli scientists awarded Nobel Prize in Chemistry Two Israeli professors have been awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their part in the discovery of regulated protein degradation - the process by which cells dispose of damaged or surplus proteins. In the early 1980s, Aaron Ciechanover and Avram Hershko, together with f... Two Israeli professors have been awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their part in the discovery of regulated protein degradation - the process by which cells dispose of damaged or surplus proteins. In the early 1980s, Aaron Ciechanover and Avram Hershko, together with fellow Nobel Laureate Irwin Rose from the US, were the first people to realise that cells function as highly efficient checking stations where proteins are constantly being built up and broken down. They revealed that the process of protein degradation in a cell is carefully controlled through the use of molecular labels, called ubiquitin. This label fastens itself to unwanted proteins, marking them out for destruction by the cells' waste disposers, proteasomes, which chop it into small pieces. The ubiquitin label separates from the protein shortly before it enters the proteasome in order to be reused. The scientists' discovery showed exactly how the cell controls a number of central processes by selectively breaking down some proteins and leaving others. Ubiquitin-mediated processes include cell division, DNA repair and important aspects of immune defence. Conversely, the failure of this process in human cells can lead to conditions such as cystic fibrosis and cervical cancer. The three Nobel Laureates will share the 10 million SEK (1.1 million euro) prize equally between them. Countries Israel, United States
