Nobel Prize in Medicine 2026 awarded for optogenetics

The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for 2026 has been awarded to Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann, and Georg Nagel for their discoveries of light-controlled ion channels and optogenetics. The Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institute made the announcement.

The prize will be divided equally among the three researchers. The total cash award for 2026 is 12 million Swedish kronor.

Peter Hegemann from Humboldt University of Berlin and Georg Nagel from the University of Würzburg discovered the light-sensitive protein channelrhodopsin in a single-celled green alga. Karl Deisseroth from Stanford University and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute transferred this mechanism to nerve cells, turning the protein into a tool for regulating signals using light.

The methodology developed by the scientists allows for the precise activation or suppression of individual nerve cells. The technology is applied in laboratory experiments to analyze neural pathways associated with memories, emotions, and mental disorders, as well as in clinical developments for restoring vision.