Three Scientists Win 2026 Nobel Prize in Medicine

Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann and Georg Nagel have been awarded the 2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their discoveries concerning light gated ion channels and optogenetics. The Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet recognized their pioneering research for opening new ways to study and control the activity of nerve cells.

Their work has made it possible to use light to switch the activity of individual nerve cells on or off in a living brain. The development of optogenetics has become an important tool in neuroscience, helping researchers investigate how neural circuits function and deepen our understanding of the brain.