Nobel Prizes: Cancer, Vision And The Genetic Code

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The present book discusses the Nobel Prizes in physiology or medicine from 1966 to 1968. The 1966 prize highlighted the role of viruses in cancer formation, revealing that these infectious agents could acquire and transmit crucial cellular genes that regulate growth. This understanding identified numerous genes involved in cancer, illustrating the disease as a dark aspect of evolution and leading to the development of new treatment methods. The eyes' rear parts, extensions of the central nervous system, exhibit remarkable complexity, with neurophysiology and biochemistry progressively analyzed. Studies in this area enhance our understanding of color differentiation and night vision, culminating in the 1967 Prize awarded to Ragnar Granit, Haldan Hartline, and George Wald for their significant contributions. The 1968 Prize recognized Robert Holley, Ghobind Khorana, and Marshall Nirenberg for their work in deciphering the genetic code. Their insights into Nature's language, which has existed for approximately 4.6 billion years, have transformed modern life sciences. The ability to read and write the "books of life" has fostered new scientific fields, deepening our grasp of evolution's intricacies and paving the way for molecular medicine by elucidating the genetic underpinnings of diseases, particularly cancer.