The 2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded on Monday to American psychiatrist and neurologist Karl Deisseroth alongside his German colleagues Peter Hegemann and Georg Nagel for their pioneering discoveries in the field of optogenetics.

This breakthrough discipline enables researchers to map how specific cell types drive complex behaviors including learning, fear, addiction, and motor functions, potentially paving the way for future therapeutic treatments targeting neurological and sensory conditions such as Parkinson's disease and epilepsy.

"Using optogenetics, researchers have been able to reveal neural circuits governing specific memories, feelings, and behaviours relevant for neurological and psychiatric disorders," declared the Nobel Assembly.

In clinical medicine, scientists are actively applying this technology in experimental trials to restore sight to visually impaired patients.

"Optogenetics has fundamentally altered our understanding of the brain. Every day brings new discoveries, helping to solve one of humanity's great mysteries: how our incredible brain works," the Nobel Assembly added.

In the previous year, the medicine prize was conferred upon Mary Brunkow and Fred Ramsdell of the United States alongside Japan's Shimon Sakaguchi for their foundational research on how the body's immune system remains regulated by identifying its cellular "security guards".

This year's three laureates will receive their honors—comprising a diploma, a gold medal, and a $1.2-million monetary award—from King Carl XVI Gustaf during an official ceremony in Stockholm on December 10, marking the anniversary of the 1896 death of prize founder Alfred Nobel.

Attention now shifts to Tuesday's upcoming announcement of the Nobel Prize in Physics, where British physicist Sir John Pendry and American scientist David Smith, pioneers behind the concept of the "invisibility cloak", have long been considered frontrunners.

The pair demonstrated that customized metamaterials can bend electromagnetic waves around physical objects, effectively hiding them from sight. The announcement for chemistry will take place on Wednesday, followed by literature on Thursday.

Speculation regarding the literature prize suggests the Swedish Academy might follow up last year's recognition of Hungarian writer Laszlo Krasznahorkai by honoring a female author, potentially hailing from Central or Latin America.

Literary critic Lina Kalmteg informed AFP that 48-year-old Argentine author Samanta Schweblin stands as a prominent candidate.

Other frequently cited names in literary Nobel predictions include Antiguan-American author Jamaica Kincaid, Chinese writer Can Xue, Australian novelists Gerald Murnane and Alexis Wright, American author Thomas Pynchon, and Mexican writer Cristina Rivera Garza.

The most widely anticipated honor remains the Nobel Peace Prize, slated for announcement on Friday in Oslo as the sole Nobel awarded outside Sweden.

Following last year's award to Venezuelan opposition figure Maria Corina Machado, which sparked considerable debate, analysts suggest the Nobel jury may lean toward a consensus candidate this year.

Former US President Donald Trump actively lobbied for the recognition last year—with Machado ultimately handing her Nobel medal over to him—and the committee remains cognizant that he will be following this year's decision attentively.

"There's always a lot of lobbying, and ultimately perhaps also attempts to exert pressure on the committee," Nobel Committee Secretary Kristian Berg Harpviken stated during an interview with AFP, adding, "We're very used to that."

Frontrunners for the peace award include a joint nomination for Save the Children alongside Mykola Kuleba, a Ukrainian children's rights advocate leading efforts to repatriate Ukrainian children unlawfully removed to Russia from occupied territories.

Additional prospective recipients include Sudan's Emergency Response Rooms (ERR), a widespread volunteer network risking their lives to deliver humanitarian aid amid war and severe famine, and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), following the deadliest calendar year on record for media personnel in 2025.

The annual Nobel announcements will conclude on October 12 with the unveiling of the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences.

Source: AFP