Nobel Prize in Chemistry awarded for super-resolution spectroscopy
Picture: 漏 Akademie / Alamy
The 2014 Nobel Prize in Chemistry has been awarded to Eric Betzig, Stefan Hell and William Moerner 鈥渇or the development of super-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy.鈥�
In its Nobel citation, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said the scientists鈥� work 鈥渉as brought optical microscopy into the nanodimension.鈥�
Welcoming the announcement, the 欧美AV鈥檚 president, Professor Dominic Tildesley, said: 鈥淏etzig, Hell and Moerner鈥檚 work to improve the resolution of traditional light microscopy has enabled scientists to bring their understanding of physiological process into much sharper focus 鈥� right down to the molecular level. Using the cutting-edge spectroscopic techniques they have developed, we are now able to see molecular processes in real time, including the study of live cells such as bacteria and important biological processes such as the transcription and translation of DNA to make proteins.
鈥淪uper-resolution fluorescence spectroscopy is now enabling scientists to peer inside living nerve cells in order to explore brain synapses, study proteins involved in Huntingdon鈥檚 Disease and track cell division in embryos 鈥� revealing whole new levels of understanding as to what is going on in the human body down to the nanoscale.
鈥淏oth involving light and both having their foundations in chemistry and physics, the parallels between today鈥檚 Chemistry prize and yesterday鈥檚 Physics prize highlight the truly interdisciplinary nature of science.鈥�
The Nobel Prizes were established by Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel in 1895. Each year prizes are awarded for outstanding contributions in Chemistry, Physics, Medicine or Physiology, Literature and Peace. Nobel stipulated in his last will and testament that his money be used to create the prizes for those who 鈥渃onfer the greatest benefit on mankind.鈥�
William Moerner and Stefan Hell are due to speak at the 欧美AV's in September 2015, in London.