Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2005

The Nobel Prize winners in Physiology or Medicine 2005 were Barry Marshall and J. Robin Warren, from Australia. In 1982 they first discovered a bacteria called Helicobacter Pylori, living in the stomach of 50% of all humans (around 90% in the developing countries). People usually get in contact with the bacteria during early childhood. These bacteria will cause ulcer peptic disease in about 10 to 15% of the infected population, either in the stomach or the duodenum. For many years it was thought that this disease was linked only to stress and/or bad eating habits.

Today, the Helicobacter Pylori is easily erradicated from the stomach with a combination of antibiotics and antiacids, and many cases of peptic ulcer are now prevented and/or cured due to this discovery. The finding that peptic ulcer disease, one of the most common diseases in humans, has a microbial cause, has stimulated the search for microbes as possible causes of other inflammatory diseases.

My comment to this year's award would be that the Nobel commitee returned to the old tradition of awarding a discovery with a direct impact in human life, in medicine. This is rather stimulating for clinical research approaches which have been lacking this kind of support and recognition in the more recent years. A desirable but often difficult basic/clinical research interface remains a challenge for many institutions but this year's award will surely inspire further discoveries in the clinical setting.