Nobel Prize in Chemistry won by 3 scientists for their works on proteins
Stockholm, Oct 3: Frances Arnold of California Institute of Technology in the US on Wednesday became only the fifth woman in history to win the Nobel Prize in Chemistry when the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced the award that recognised two other scientists for their works on proteins.
While Arnold has won one half of the 9 million Swedish krona (Rs 7.3 crore) award, the other half would be shared by George Smith of University of Missouri in the US and Gregory Winter of the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Britain.
Before Arnold, only four women -- Ada Yonath in 2009, Dorothy Crowfoot Hodgkin in 1964, Irene Joliot-Curie in 1935 and Marie Curie in 1911 -- won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
"This year's Nobel Laureates in Chemistry have been inspired by the power of evolution and used the same principles -- genetic change and selection -- to develop proteins that solve mankind's chemical problems," the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said in a statement.
In 1993, Arnold conducted the first directed evolution of enzymes, which are proteins that catalyse chemical reactions. Since then, she has refined the methods that are now routinely used to develop new catalysts.
The uses of Arnold's enzymes include more environmentally friendly manufacturing of chemical substances, such as pharmaceuticals, and the production of renewable fuels for a greener transport sector.
The other half of this year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry would be shared by Smith and Winter.
In 1985, Smith developed an elegant method known as phage display, where a bacteriophage -- a virus that infects bacteria -- can be used to evolve new proteins.
Winter used phage display for the directed evolution of antibodies, with the aim of producing new pharmaceuticals.
The first one based on this method, adalimumab, was approved in 2002 and is used for rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis and inflammatory bowel diseases.
Since then, phage display has produced anti-bodies that can neutralise toxins, counteract autoimmune diseases and cure metastatic cancer.
"The 2018 Nobel Laureates in Chemistry have taken control of evolution and used it for purposes that bring the greatest benefit to humankind," the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said.
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Commuters bear brunt as labour union protest halts traffic at Delhi-Noida border
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New Delhi (PTI): Commuters faced a harrowing morning on Monday as a massive traffic jam brought vehicular movement to a near standstill at the Delhi-Noida border following a protest by a labour union demanding a salary hike.
The protest, which began early in the day, led to congestion on key arterial roads connecting Delhi and Noida, including NH 9, severely disrupting the office rush hour.
Long queues of vehicles were seen stretching for several kilometres, with many commuters stranded for hours.
A police source said that members of the labour union from Uttar Pradesh gathered near the border area were staging a demonstration, blocking portions of the road and slowing down traffic movement.
"Personnel from the Delhi Police and Noida Police were deployed to manage the situation and divert traffic, but the heavy volume of vehicles compounded the chaos," the source said.
Frustrated commuters took to social media platform X, urging authorities to intervene and clear the roads. Many complained of being stuck in unmoving traffic despite starting early to avoid peak-hour congestion.
An employee of a private company said she left her home at around 7:30 am but remained stuck in traffic for over an hour without any significant movement.
"There is no movement at all. People are getting down from vehicles and trying to figure out what's happening ahead," she said.
Authorities said efforts were underway to clear the congestion and restore smooth traffic flow as soon as possible.
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