School of Medicine

The Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet has just announced that the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2011 will be shared between Bruce A. Beutler and Jules A. Hoffmann for their discoveries concerning the activation of innate immunity, and Ralph M. Steinman for his discovery of the dendritic cell and its role in adaptive immunity.

This year's Nobel Laureates have revolutionized our understanding of the immune system by discovering key principles for its activation.

Scientists have long been searching for the gatekeepers of the immune response by which man and other animals defend themselves against attack by bacteria and other microorganisms. Bruce Beutler and Jules Hoffmann discovered receptor proteins that can recognize such microorganisms and activate innate immunity, the first step in the body's immune response. Ralph Steinman discovered the dendritic cells of the immune system and their unique capacity to activate and regulate adaptive immunity, the later stage of the immune response during which microorganisms are cleared from the body.

The discoveries of the three Nobel Laureates have revealed how the innate and adaptive phases of the immune response are activated and thereby provided novel insights into disease mechanisms. Their work has opened up new avenues for the development of prevention and therapy against infections, cancer, and inflammatory diseases.

The Jonathan Boulter Memorial Lecture

Earlier this year, Bruce Beutler gave the Jonathan Boulter Memorial Lecture 2011 at Cardiff University.

This special lecture is given annually by distinguished international immunologists, in memory of Dr Jonathan Boulter, a promising young immunologist with a particular interest in the bioengineering of high affinity T cell receptors, who tragically lost his brave fight with brain cancer in 2008.

The Jonathan Boulter Memorial Lecture provides a forum for world-renowned scientists to visit Cardiff and present outstanding achievements and scientific advances. It also gives local researchers and students a unique opportunity for stimulating discussions with our distinguished guests.

The high profile of our invited speakers could not have been illustrated better than by today's announement that Bruce Beutler has received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2011.

Congratulations to him and his fellow Nobel Prize winners Jules Hoffmann and Ralph Steinman!

(Bruce Beutler on 27 April 2011 at Cardiff University during the Jonathan Boulter Memorial Lecture 2011, "Genetic analysis of innate immunity in mammals")