Two U.S.-based scientists have been awarded the 2021 Nobel Prize in medicine for solving the mystery of how human bodies feel warmth and touch. David Julius and Ardem Patapoutian shared the prize for discovering how bodies turn physical sensations into electrical messages in our nervous systems, explaining why sunlight or a hug feel the way they do. Announcing the prize Monday morning, the Nobel Committee explained: “Julius utilized capsaicin, a pungent compound from chili peppers that induces a burning sensation, to identify a sensor in the nerve endings of the skin that responds to heat... Patapoutian used pressure-sensitive cells to discover a novel class of sensors that respond to mechanical stimuli in the skin and internal organs.” Thomas Perlman, from the Nobel Committee, said the pair’s discoveries were “important and profound.”
