Rolf M. Zinkernagel facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Rolf Zinkernagel
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Zinkernagel in 2011
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| Born | 6 January 1944 |
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| Known for | Cytotoxic T cells |
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| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Immunology |
| Institutions | University of Zurich |
| Thesis | The role of the H-2 gene complex in cell-mediated immunity to viral and bacterial infections in mice (1975) |
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|religion = |signature = Rolf M. Zinkernagel.svg |footnotes = | website = }} Rolf Martin Zinkernagel (born 6 January 1944) is a famous scientist from Switzerland. He is a professor of immunology at the University of Zurich. Immunology is the study of the immune system, which protects our bodies from sickness.
In 1996, Rolf Zinkernagel won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. He shared this award with Peter C. Doherty. They won for their amazing discovery of how our immune system finds and destroys cells infected with viruses.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Rolf Zinkernagel was born in Riehen, Switzerland. He studied medicine and became a doctor. He received his MD (Doctor of Medicine) degree in 1970 from the University of Basel.
Later, he continued his studies in Australia. He earned his PhD (Doctor of Philosophy) degree in 1975. This degree was from the Australian National University.
Discovering How the Immune System Works
Rolf Zinkernagel's most important work was about how our bodies fight off viruses. Viruses are tiny germs that can make us sick. They get inside our cells and use them to make more viruses.
Killer T-Cells and Their Job
Our immune system has special cells called "killer T-cells." Their job is to find and destroy cells that are infected with viruses. This stops the viruses from spreading.
The Big Discovery
Zinkernagel and Peter Doherty found something very important. For killer T-cells to recognize an infected cell, they need to see two things on its surface:
- First, they need to see a piece of the virus, called a "virus antigen."
- Second, they need to see a special molecule from the body itself. This molecule is called the major histocompatibility complex (MHC).
Think of it like a secret handshake. The T-cell needs to see both the virus part and the body's own MHC molecule to know which cells to attack. This discovery helped us understand how our bodies protect us from many diseases. It also helped explain why organ transplants can sometimes be rejected.
Awards and Honors
Rolf Zinkernagel has received many important awards for his scientific work.
Nobel Prize
The most famous award he received was the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1996. He shared this with Peter C. Doherty. This made him the 24th person from Switzerland to win a Nobel Prize.
Other Recognitions
In 1999, he was given a special honor in Australia. He became an honorary Companion of the Order of Australia (AC). This is Australia's highest award for civilians.
He also won several other important science awards, including:
- The Cloëtta Prize in 1981
- The William B. Coley Award in 1987
- The Otto-Naegeli-Preis in 1988
- The Albert Lasker Medical Research Award in 1995
Rolf Zinkernagel's work has greatly helped us understand how our immune system keeps us healthy.
Images for kids
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Rolf Zinkernagel's signature
See also
In Spanish: Rolf Zinkernagel para niños
