DOMINANT ANGLE
London takes from the Nobel in optogenetics a promise of brain mapping, from memory to psychiatric disorders, with the restoration of sight as the first cited clinical application.
Dominant angle identified — does not reflect unanimity of this country’s media
KEY POINTS
- 01
The 2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine goes to Karl Deisseroth (54 years old), Peter Hegemann (71 years old), and Georg Nagel (73 years old) for light-activated ion channels and optogenetics.
- 02
The three laureates share 12 million Swedish crowns, equivalent to about 900,000 pounds according to the BBC.
- 03
According to the BBC, researchers are using the method in an attempt to restore vision in visually impaired individuals.
ANALYSIS
London, 6 October 2026. The British press presents the 2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, announced on Monday, 5 October, as a reward for having "revealed the internal functioning of the brain". The BBC focuses on American Karl Deisseroth, a psychiatrist and neurologist, and Germans Peter Hegemann and Georg Nagel, distinguished for optogenetics.
The British narrative relies heavily on the words of the Nobel Assembly. The Assembly states that the method has laid "the foundations for a new era in neuroscience" by showing how to activate or cut off neural circuits related to specific "memories, feelings, and behaviors", useful for neurological and psychiatric disorders. Per Svenningsson, chairman of the Nobel Committee, sees it as a way to map the brain "like we could only dream of before". The Assembly adds: "Every day brings new discoveries."
The BBC explains the technique to the general public: a protein borrowed from algae, which researchers use to control the electrical activity of cells with light. It specifies that Hegemann and Nagel uncovered, in the early 2000s, the light-sensitive channels. The text notes that before this, the mechanisms behind emotions, behaviors, and bodily functions remained largely a mystery.
The only medical application highlighted is vision: according to the BBC, researchers are using the method to try to restore it in blind people. The Independent, on the other hand, repeats the formula of the committee that optogenetics "allows you to turn on or off the activity of individual nerve cells in a living brain", and emphasizes its use "in laboratories around the world".
Both titles also give the figures for the prize: 12 million Swedish crowns, equivalent to approximately 900,000 pounds for the BBC and 1.2 million dollars for The Independent, to be shared among the three laureates. The Independent provides the ages: 54 years old for Deisseroth, 71 years old for Hegemann, and 73 years old for Nagel. The laureates, according to the BBC, have judged the distinction "absolutely wonderful" and said they are honored to share it with friends.
The Independent finally puts the announcement into the calendar: the Medicine Prize traditionally opens the Nobel season, before Physics, Chemistry, Literature, Peace, and Economics in the coming days. It recalls that the Economics Prize dates back to 1968 and comes from the Central Bank of Sweden.
