Japan's professor wins Nobel Prize in Medicine
Satoshi Omura, a distinguished professor emeritus of Kitasato University, has won the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with William Campbell for their discoveries concerning a novel therapy against infections caused by roundworm parasites, Swede
According to the institute, Omura and Campbell — a research fellow emeritus at Drew University in the United States — discovered a new drug called Avermectin, the derivatives of which have radically lowered the incidence of river blindness and lymphatic filariasis, and been effective against an expanding number of other parasitic diseases.
Omura and Campbell won the prize along with Youyou Tu of China, who was honored for her discoveries concerning a novel therapy against malaria.
The institute praised the winning discoveries as having “provided humankind with powerful new means to combat these debilitating diseases that affect hundreds of millions of people annually. The consequences in terms of improved human health and reduced suffering are immeasurable.”
Omura, 80, is the 23rd Nobel recipient for Japan, and follows last year’s win by three scientists — Isamu Akasaki, Hiroshi Amano and Shuji Nakamura — in Physics. He is also the first Japanese to win a Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine since Kyoto University Prof. Shinya Yamanaka in 2012.
