2020 Chemistry Noble Prize

The 2020 Noble Prize in Chemistry is being equally shared by French researcher Emmanuelle Charpentier and American biochemist Jennifer A. Doudna.

They discovered one of the keenest tools in gene technology, CRISPR/Cas9 which is used to edit DNA. With the help of this, researchers can manipulate the DNA of animals, plants, and microorganisms with extremely high precision.

The importance of this discovery is countless. It can be used for the following:

• Better understanding of cancer and possibly finding its cure

• Learning about genetic diseases and finding their cure

• Medical treatment

• Improving current medical practices

• Production of drugs and vaccines

• Increasing animal and plant food production

A sum of 10 million Swedish kronor (Rs. 8.2 crores) will be equally shared between them as their noble prize win.

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News source: The New York Times

Update by Ayesha Ayub