“Family” award for the “GPS” in the brain has opened the Nobel week 2014 – RIA Novosti

© East News / AP / FOTOLINK

MOSCOW, October 6 – RIA Novosti. Nobel Week 2014 opened in Stockholm on Monday announcement of winners of the highest scientific honor in medicine or physiology. Prize was shared between a US-British scientist John O’Keefe (John O’Keefe) and his wife May-Britt and Edvard Moser (May-Britt and Edward Moser) from Norway, find out how to construct an internal “navigation system” of animals and humans.

The results of these studies, in addition to a fundamental understanding of how the “map” in our brain, help in understanding the causes of serious illnesses, such as Alzheimer’s disease, and even come in handy when creating robots androids who are able to focus on their own areas, experts say.

B history of the Nobel Prize have been cases where it received spouses. Pierre and Marie Curie in 1903 were awarded prizes in physics, and in 1935 their daughter Irene Curie and her husband Frederic Joliot were awarded in the field of chemistry. In 2014, the hour has come for the “family” prize for medicine.

Our internal Navigator

O’Keefe and Moser awarded the Nobel Prize for his discovery of cells that make up the positioning system of the brain. O’Keefe will receive one half of the prize, and the couple Moser – other.

Works new winners allowed to answer the questions, how do we know at what point in space are, as we find a path from one place to another and how This information is recorded and played back, depending on location, according to a press release of the Nobel Committee.

In 1971, O’Keeffe discovered in rat brain cells so-called places that are always activated when the animals were in fact or any other place of the room where the experiments were conducted. O’Keefe came to the conclusion that these cells form in the rat brain kind of card rooms.

In 2005, Moser discovered another key component of our “system GPS” – coordinate neurons that create the internal coordinate system of the brain.

At the cell and space and coordinate neurons are responsible for positioning and navigation. These cells are affected in neurodegenerative diseases associated with the loss of orientation in space. Knowing how the system positioning in the brain to help treat these disorders.

Paradigm Shift

The works of Nobel Prize in Medicine in 2014 made it possible to understand how the brain is formed of animals at the cellular level and thereby changed the paradigm in neuroscience, says a leading researcher at the Faculty of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Moscow State University George Bazykin.

“We have a pretty good idea to understand how the nerve cell. We understand how the brain is at the macro level. But intermediate level, an understanding of the structure of the “folding” of cells with each other, how they manage to find the interactions that enable the creation of complex brain – it was not clear, “- said Bazykin the TV channel” Russia 24 “.

According Bazykina, the results of awarded this year’s Nobel Prize, will find medical applications. “But it seems to me that the most fundamental – is understanding what constitutes a complex whole, as our brain,” – said the scientist.

The path to the future androids

The results of O ‘ Cephas and Moser can help create robots androids new generation, using the principles of the brain of animals and humans, says the head of the Institute of General Genetics, epigenetics Vavilov Professor Sergey Kiselev.

“The Nobel Prize is awarded for that scientific discovery has given or may give mankind in terms of technology. So in terms of technology, such studies (performed by current winners – Ed.) make it possible to make a big step in the knowledge of himself, his brain and in the creation of any robotic devices, “- said Kiselev the TV channel “Russia 24″. He recalled that one of the new winners, O’Keefe, deals with the application of neurobiological research data to artificial systems.

According to Kiselyov, for the development of robotics, “it is necessary to change the logic of information systems”, “peeped” necessary solutions from nature.

“And if we learn as effectively play these things out of the body, of course, it will give great technological advantages,” – said the scientist. In particular, the cells which comprise the “navigation system” in the brain of animals and humans can be used in control systems of robots, suggests Kiselev. “Of course, this options is not today, and tomorrow,” – said the scientist.

Norway exults

The news that among the winners of the Nobel Prize in Medicine for 2014 – Norwegian researchers dominates in the Norwegian media, which are called historical award.

“First of Nobel laureates in medicine called Norwegians!” – the Norwegian TV and Radio NRK.

With the award of a Norwegian couple has congratulated the head Government of Norway Erna Solberg. “Excellent! Inspiration for the Norwegian scientists and especially for patients”, – said the Prime Minister.

The Rector of the Norwegian University of Technology Gunnar Bovim, commenting in an interview with the Swedish newspaper “Dagens Nyheter” on the award, said that the news that of the Nobel Prize for Medicine – Norwegian researchers, “we were not surprised”.

“We have long paid attention to the group, and they are engaged in research at the Nobel level for many years. feature is that they are (by the standards of the Nobel Prizes) are very young, and that’s unusual. We are so proud that we have the words “, – he said.

The awards ceremony will be held on December 10 in the tradition of the day of death of the founder of the Nobel Prizes – Swedish entrepreneur and inventor Alfred Nobel (1833-1896).

On Tuesday in Stockholm will be announced the names of winners of the Nobel Prize in Physics.