American Chemical Society comment on award of 2009 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
WASHINGTON, Oct. 7, 2009 — Thomas H. Lane, Ph.D., president of the American Chemical Society, the world’s largest scientific society, comments on today’s award of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry to Venkatraman Ramakrishnan, Thomas A. Steitz and Ada E. Yonath “for studies of the structure and function of the ribosome.”
“The research behind these prizes shows how the transforming power of chemistry can improve peoples’ lives. Scientists around the world are using the winners’ research to develop new antibiotics that can be used in the ongoing battle against antibiotic-resistant microbes that cause so much illness, suffering and death. Chemists like these new Nobel laureates are creating breakthrough advances that not only improve and save lives but also put a human face on chemistry that can serve as an inspiration to future chemists!”
ACS’ weekly newsmagazine, Chemical & Engineering News, ran this cover story on ribosomes, topic of the prize.
— Michael Woods