At 3:30 PM UTC on October 6, 2025, the 2025 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was officially announced.
American scientists Mary E. Brunkow, Fred Ramsdell, and Japanese scientist Shimon Sakaguchi were awarded the prize for their "discoveries concerning peripheral immune tolerance." The prize money amounts to 11 million Swedish kronor (approximately 8.34 million Chinese yuan).
Mary E. Brunkow, an American molecular biologist, has made significant contributions to the study of the FOXP3 gene. In her 2001 research, she first identified the association between FOXP3 gene mutations and IPEX syndrome, laying the foundation for understanding the genetic basis of regulatory T cells. Her work helped confirm that FOXP3 is the "master switch" for the function of regulatory T cells and promoted the rapid development of this field.
Fred Ramsdell, an American immunologist, is renowned for his research on the molecular mechanisms of regulatory T cells. He played a key role in the discovery of the FOXP3 gene, a core transcription factor for the function of regulatory T cells. Ramsdell's research revealed the relationship between FOXP3 mutations and IPEX syndrome, a rare autoimmune disease, further confirming the importance of Treg cells in maintaining immune tolerance.
Shimon Sakaguchi, a Japanese immunologist born in 1951, is currently a Distinguished Professor at Osaka University. His most famous contribution is the discovery of "regulatory T cells" (Treg cells), which act as a "brake" in the immune system to prevent it from attacking the body's own tissues. In 1995, he first identified CD25 as the marker molecule of Treg cells and experimentally verified the key role of these cells in preventing autoimmune diseases.
Looking at the century-old history of the Nobel Prize, from 1901 to 2025, a total of 116 Nobel Prizes in Physiology or Medicine have been awarded. Each prize can be shared by a maximum of three people, resulting in 232 laureates, with no one receiving the award more than once.
Among the 232 laureates, 40 have won the prize alone. There are 14 female laureates, including Chinese Nobel Prize winner Tu Youyou.
The youngest laureate is Canadian physician Sir Frederick G. Banting, who was awarded the 1923 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for the discovery of insulin at the age of 31.
The oldest laureate is American biologist and virologist Peyton Rous, who received the prize in 1966 at the age of 87 for discovering tumor-inducing viruses.
Throughout the history of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, numerous studies have profoundly influenced clinical medical practice, paving new paths for humanity to combat diseases.
List of Nobel Laureates in Physiology or Medicine Over the Past 10 Years
Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine: A "Century of Medical History"
Who discovered penicillin? Who is the "father of in vitro fertilization"? Why can old horses find their way home and carrier pigeons deliver messages? Answers to these questions can be found in the list of past laureates of this prize.
Over the past century, the research fields of the laureates have covered genetics, DNA and molecular biology, infectious diseases, and other areas related to human health, making it almost a "century of medical history."
Number of Awards
From 1901 to 2025, 116 Nobel Prizes in Physiology or Medicine have been awarded, honoring 232 individuals.
The prize was not awarded in 9 years: 1915, 1916, 1917, 1918, 1921, 1925, 1940, 1941, and 1942.
Medal
The Nobel Prize medal for Physiology or Medicine was designed by Swedish sculptor and engraver Erik Lindberg. It depicts a medical genius holding an open book on his knees, collecting water gushing from a rock to quench the thirst of a sick girl.
Each Nobel Prize certificate is a unique work of art, created by leading Swedish and Norwegian artists and calligraphers.
Female Laureates
Among the 224 laureates of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, 12 are female.
One of the 2015 laureates is Tu Youyou from China.
On October 5, 2015, Tu Youyou was jointly awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine by the Nobel Committee, along with two other scientists, for her outstanding contributions to the development of artemisinin and other antimalarial drugs.
Tu Youyou is the third person in history to win the prize for malaria research, the first Chinese laureate of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, the second Asian and the first Chinese female laureate of a Nobel Prize in the natural sciences, and the eleventh person to win both the Lasker Clinical Medical Research Award and the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.
Freud: A Veteran "Nominee Without a Win"
As a "master" in the history of psychology, Austrian psychologist Sigmund Freud was nominated for the prize 32 times but never succeeded, becoming one of the most veteran "nominees without a win" for the award. In 1936, famous French writer Romain Rolland even nominated Freud for the Nobel Prize in Literature, but Freud did not "succeed across fields" and still failed.
Sources: Nobel Prize official website, Science Network, Research Masters, etc.