Nobel 2025 in Physiology or Medicine went to Mary E. Brunkow, Fred Ramsdell and Shimon Sakaguchi for explaining how the immune system holds its fire — the discovery of regulatory T-cells and the FOXP3 switch that underwrite “peripheral immune tolerance”, now central to thinking on autoimmunity, transplants and cancer. It is a prize about restraint: The circuitry that stops our defences from turning on us.
More than half a century earlier, in 1968 Har Gobind Khorana ’s Nobel marked a different hinge in biology: with Robert Holley and Marshall Nirenberg he helped crack the genetic code , showing how strings of nucleotides are read into amino acids, the alphabet and grammar that make proteins. That work seeded gene synthesis and the molecular toolkit on which modern immunology stands, including today’s ability to read, edit and programme T-cells. From Khorana’s code to this year’s tolerance, the arc runs from information to control: First learning the language of life, then learning when to say “enough”.
From Punjab to the global stageBorn in 1922 in British India (Raipur, Punjab, now in Pakistan), Khorana grew up in a modest family. His early education sparked a passion for chemistry, leading him to the University of the Punjab , Lahore, where he earned BSc and MSc degrees. Always eager to explore beyond the classroom, he moved to the University of Liverpool in the UK for his PhD, where he deepened his knowledge of chemistry.
His academic journey didn’t stop there. He went on to train at ETH Zürich, one of the world’s leading centers for science and technology. This exposure shifted his interests from traditional chemistry to the emerging field of biochemistry , particularly the chemistry of life processes. For students, this path demonstrates the value of persistence, curiosity, and global learning.
How he cracked the genetic codeBy the mid-20th century, scientists had discovered DNA, but a crucial question remained: how does DNA instruct cells to build proteins? Proteins are essential for almost every function in a living organism, from digesting food to transmitting nerve signals. Khorana, together with Nirenberg and Holley, showed that specific sequences of three nucleotides (called codons) in RNA correspond to specific amino acids.
In simpler terms, think of DNA as a coded instruction book and proteins as machines built from instructions. Khorana figured out the “letters” and “words” of this genetic language. His experiments involved creating artificial RNA sequences in the lab and observing which amino acids they produced—work that was both meticulous and groundbreaking.
Pioneering Gene Synthesis at MITAfter research stints in Vancouver (University of British Columbia) and Madison ( University of Wisconsin ), Khorana joined MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology). There, he and his team achieved the first chemical synthesis of genes, building them strand by strand in the laboratory. This work was revolutionary because it allowed scientists to create, modify, and study genes in a controlled setting.
Gene synthesis opened doors to countless applications: developing new medicines, understanding genetic diseases, creating insulin in labs, and even paving the way for CRISPR-based gene editing techniques used today. For students, this is a perfect example of how curiosity and careful experimentation can lead to discoveries that change the world.
Beyond the Nobel: Contributions to Cell Biology and MedicineKhorana’s research continued well beyond his Nobel-winning work. He studied membrane proteins, which control how cells communicate, and photoreceptors, the proteins in eyes that detect light. These studies helped scientists understand how signals are transmitted in cells, a foundation for fields like neurobiology and vision research.
The legacy Har Gobind Khorana passed away in 2011, but his legacy lives on. His work bridged chemistry and biology, showing that the language of life can be read and written. For students, he is a reminder that scientific breakthroughs often require patience, creativity, and a willingness to cross disciplinary boundaries.
Khorana’s life also teaches valuable lessons: learning from diverse educational experiences, embracing international collaboration, and thinking beyond traditional boundaries. Today, every student who studies DNA, genes, or proteins is building on the foundation that Khorana helped create.
More than half a century earlier, in 1968 Har Gobind Khorana ’s Nobel marked a different hinge in biology: with Robert Holley and Marshall Nirenberg he helped crack the genetic code , showing how strings of nucleotides are read into amino acids, the alphabet and grammar that make proteins. That work seeded gene synthesis and the molecular toolkit on which modern immunology stands, including today’s ability to read, edit and programme T-cells. From Khorana’s code to this year’s tolerance, the arc runs from information to control: First learning the language of life, then learning when to say “enough”.
From Punjab to the global stageBorn in 1922 in British India (Raipur, Punjab, now in Pakistan), Khorana grew up in a modest family. His early education sparked a passion for chemistry, leading him to the University of the Punjab , Lahore, where he earned BSc and MSc degrees. Always eager to explore beyond the classroom, he moved to the University of Liverpool in the UK for his PhD, where he deepened his knowledge of chemistry.
His academic journey didn’t stop there. He went on to train at ETH Zürich, one of the world’s leading centers for science and technology. This exposure shifted his interests from traditional chemistry to the emerging field of biochemistry , particularly the chemistry of life processes. For students, this path demonstrates the value of persistence, curiosity, and global learning.
How he cracked the genetic codeBy the mid-20th century, scientists had discovered DNA, but a crucial question remained: how does DNA instruct cells to build proteins? Proteins are essential for almost every function in a living organism, from digesting food to transmitting nerve signals. Khorana, together with Nirenberg and Holley, showed that specific sequences of three nucleotides (called codons) in RNA correspond to specific amino acids.
In simpler terms, think of DNA as a coded instruction book and proteins as machines built from instructions. Khorana figured out the “letters” and “words” of this genetic language. His experiments involved creating artificial RNA sequences in the lab and observing which amino acids they produced—work that was both meticulous and groundbreaking.
Pioneering Gene Synthesis at MITAfter research stints in Vancouver (University of British Columbia) and Madison ( University of Wisconsin ), Khorana joined MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology). There, he and his team achieved the first chemical synthesis of genes, building them strand by strand in the laboratory. This work was revolutionary because it allowed scientists to create, modify, and study genes in a controlled setting.
Gene synthesis opened doors to countless applications: developing new medicines, understanding genetic diseases, creating insulin in labs, and even paving the way for CRISPR-based gene editing techniques used today. For students, this is a perfect example of how curiosity and careful experimentation can lead to discoveries that change the world.
Beyond the Nobel: Contributions to Cell Biology and MedicineKhorana’s research continued well beyond his Nobel-winning work. He studied membrane proteins, which control how cells communicate, and photoreceptors, the proteins in eyes that detect light. These studies helped scientists understand how signals are transmitted in cells, a foundation for fields like neurobiology and vision research.
The legacy Har Gobind Khorana passed away in 2011, but his legacy lives on. His work bridged chemistry and biology, showing that the language of life can be read and written. For students, he is a reminder that scientific breakthroughs often require patience, creativity, and a willingness to cross disciplinary boundaries.
Khorana’s life also teaches valuable lessons: learning from diverse educational experiences, embracing international collaboration, and thinking beyond traditional boundaries. Today, every student who studies DNA, genes, or proteins is building on the foundation that Khorana helped create.
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