Nathan Richardson

The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2011

Awarded to Bruce A. Beutler, and Jules A. Hoffmann for their discoveries concerning the activation of innate immunity and to Ralph M. Steinman for his discovery of the dendritic cell and its role in adaptive immunity.

"The 2011 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine - Popular Information".Nobelprize.org. Nobel Media AB 2013. Web. 4 Nov 2013. http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/medicine/laureates/2011/popular.html "Bruce A. Beutler - Biographical". Nobelprize.org. Nobel Media AB 2013. Web. 4 Nov 2013. http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/medicine/laureates/2011/beutler-bio.html "Ralph M. Steinman - Biographical". Nobelprize.org. Nobel Media AB 2013. Web. 4 Nov 2013. http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/medicine/laureates/2011/steinman-bio.html "Jules A. Hoffmann - Facts". Nobelprize.org. Nobel Media AB 2013. Web. 3 Nov 2013. <http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/medicine/laureates/2011/hoffmann-facts.html>

The Immune system acts in two ways: Innate immunity and Adaptive immunity. The Innate immune system is the fastest way our bodies react to an attack. It is something we are essentially born with and never really changes. It can help bring down swelling and inflammation, but it will not kill off microorganisms. If the microorganisms survive the innate immune system, then the Adaptive immune system is deployed. The Adaptive immune system is the exact opposite of the innate immune system. It is slower and will eventually kill off infection. These two immune systems become crucially important when discussing the dendritic cell. The dendritic cell is a cell that acts as a coordinator of the T-cells, or sensors, of the adaptive immune system. This was first noticed in fruit flies, who have special sensors to help their immune systems fight infection. Jules Hoffman studied fruit flies with mutations of various genes, including Toll. Flies exposed a mutated Toll gene and then a fungal infection died. Those without a mutated Toll gene managed to fight off the disease. This let us know there had to be some sort of receptor that activates the innate immune system. Bruce Beutler later found this to be true with mice as well as humans. These cells are known as Toll-like receptors (TLR) that sensed a substance formed by many pathogenic bacteria, lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Ralph Steinman later found that these TLR cells, or T-cells, were being controlled by another cell. He named it the dendritic cell from the Greek word for tree due to its shape. Because of these discoveries, we may eventually be able to create vaccines that fight tumors and also helps us begin to understand how our bodies can make mistakes and attack our own tissues. This work was done in order to give us a greater understanding of how our bodies fight of infection. This will help scientist further investigate the cells that are crucial to survival and how cells can go corrupt. These findings can help us create different and more efficient vaccines that focus more on helping the immune system function. Bruce A. Beutler was born in 1957 in Chicago, Illinois, but spent most of his childhood in Arcadia, California. He started 1at grade when he was 5 years old and attended public schools up until the age of 13. He then attended Polytechnic School, a college preparatory school in Pasadena, California. He now lives in Dallas, Texas where he is building a Center for the Genetics of Host Defense. Jules A. Hoffmann was born in 1941 in Echernach, Luxembourg. He studied and is currently teaching at the University of Strasbourg. Ralph M. Steinman was born in 1943 in Montreal Canada. He studied at Rockefeller University, New York. He is currently dead. He dies September 30th 2011 at the age of 68.