The discovery, though crucial to understanding how human bodies work, is almost invisible to the wider world
THOSE WHO pick the winners of Nobel science prizes do sometimes plump for big and obvious names. Often, though, they seem to take great joy in shining the spotlight of fame onto researchers little known outside their own fields, let alone to the general public. This year’s prize in physiology or medicine is a classic of the genre.
Dr Kaelin’s contribution was to discover a further protein, VHL, that regulates how levels of HIF in a cell are controlled by oxygen levels. HIF actually consists of two proteins, now known as HIF-1 alpha and ARNT. ARNT is always present in a cell, but the level of HIF-1 alpha depends on the amount of oxygen present. More oxygen means less HIF-1 alpha. That, in turn, means less of the HIF complex. Genes like that for EPO, which rely on HIF to switch them on, thus remain inactive.
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