{
  "id": 12609569,
  "title": "Auszeichnungen: Chemie-Nobelpreis kürt wichtiges Basiswissen für Medikamente",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/07/auszeichnungen-chemie-nobelpreis-kurt-wichtiges-basiswissen-fur",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-10-07T10:41:35.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Handelsblatt",
    "slug": "handelsblatt",
    "url": "https://www.handelsblatt.com/technik/forschung-innovation/auszeichnungen-chemie-nobelpreis-kuert-wichtiges-basiswissen-fuer-medikamente/100260398.html"
  },
  "original_language": "de",
  "account": "The 2023 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to French scientist Henri Kagan (95) and Japanese researcher Kenso Soai (76) for their groundbreaking work on a century-old chemistry mystery. The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm announced the decision. Kagan and Soai solved the question of how homochirality, molecules that behave like mirror images like human left and right hands, spontaneously arises.\n\nChirality refers to the property of many molecules, such as amino acids, that exist in two forms, the L- and R-forms, which are mirror images of each other. One form often dominates in nature due to its perfect fit at docking sites on human cells, while the other, its mirrored version, typically doesn't fit and could even be harmful. This principle is crucial in medicine, with most modern drugs developed as active enantiomers, while the ineffective or toxic mirror image is avoided. This concept was particularly important in the 1960s Contergan scandal, where one form of the drug Thalidomide prevented inflammation, but its mirror image caused birth defects.\n\nIn 1986, Kagan discovered a method to influence chemical reactions, enabling him to produce more of one side of these mirror-image molecules. In 1995, Soai from Tokyo University of Science presented a chemical reaction that theoretically could generate homochiral molecules. Two years later, Soai shared a reaction that actually produced only one of the mirror-image molecules.\n\nThe Nobel Committee described these chemical reactions as spectacular, noting that it was the first time anyone had achieved this feat. Kagan and Soai expressed their immense joy at receiving this prestigious recognition, describing it as one of the most exciting days of their lives. The Nobel Prize in Chemistry is endowed with twelve million Swedish Krona, equivalent to about one million Euros.",
  "summary": "Die weltweit renommierteste Auszeichnung im Fach Chemie geht in diesem Jahr nach Frankreich und Japan. Die Forschung der Preisträger spielt eine zentrale Rolle bei der Herstellung von Medikamenten.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Handelsblatt",
        "title": "Auszeichnungen: Chemie-Nobelpreis an einen Franzosen und einen Japaner",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/07/auszeichnungen-chemie-nobelpreis-an-einen-franzosen-und-einen-japaner",
        "published": "2026-10-07T09:56:29.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}