The Nobel Committee on Monday in Stockholm awarded the Nobel Price in Medicine or Physiology to Americans Harvey J Alter and Charles M Rice, and British scientist Michael Houghton. The trio’s work helped explain a major source of blood-borne hepatitis that couldn’t be explained by the hepatitis A and B viruses, and is now being called the Hepatitis C Virus.
The committee thanked the scientists for their discovery due to which highly sensitive blood tests for the virus are now available. Thay have essentially eliminated post-transfusion hepatitis in many parts of the world, greatly improving global health.
The discovery also allowed the rapid development of antiviral drugs directed at hepatitis C.
The medicine prize has great significance this year due to the coronavirus pandemic,
The award is the first of six prizes being announced through October 12. The other prizes will be awarded for outstanding work in the fields of physics, chemistry, literature, peace and economics.
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