STOCKHOLM: French scientist Henry B. Kagan and Japanese scientist Kenshu Sui have won the 2026 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for discoveries that helped scientists understand molecular chirality and control the formation of desired molecular structures.
The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced the award Wednesday, saying the scientists were honored for their work on nonlinear effects and autocatalysis in asymmetric organic synthesis.
Their discoveries have helped advance the ability to produce molecules with a specific mirror-image structure, an area of chemistry that is particularly important in pharmaceutical research and drug development.
Many molecules exist in two forms that are mirror images of each other but are not identical. The two forms can have different chemical and biological properties, much like the human right and left hands.
Carvone, for example, provides a familiar illustration of this phenomenon. One mirror-image form produces a mint-like smell, while the other has an aroma associated with caraway.
Molecular shape is also important in living organisms. Proteins in the human body are largely built from amino acids with one particular orientation, while DNA has a characteristic right-handed helical structure.
The different forms of a molecule can also interact differently with the human body. This makes molecular chirality especially important in medicine, where researchers seek to produce the form of a compound that provides the desired therapeutic effect.
Kagan and Sui developed methods that allow chemical reactions to be controlled so that a desired mirror-image molecule can be produced in greater quantities.
Nobel Committee member Peter Somfai described the research as among the particularly fascinating developments in organic chemistry, saying the scientists' discoveries had transformed understanding of molecular chirality.
The work is considered an important foundation for advances in modern drug development and pharmaceutical science.
