Nobel Prize in Physiology/Medicine 2026
On Monday, 5 October 2026, the Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet awarded the 2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine jointly to Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann, and Georg Nagel “for their discoveries concerning light-gated ion channels and optogenetics”.
From the press release of Karolinska Institutet:
“The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2026 is awarded for optogenetics – a method that makes it possible to show how nerve cells shape memories, feelings and behaviours in the living brain. Peter Hegemann and Georg Nagel discovered a remarkable protein, channelrhodopsin, in a single-celled alga. Karl Deisseroth transformed the protein into a light-controlled switch for nerve cells. The Laureates have laid the foundation of a new era in neuroscience.”
Read more about the 2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.
Professor Nagel already has a connection to the Lake Constance area: He grew up in Weingarten and is an Alumnus of the University of Constance. We hope to welcome all three of them to next year's 76th Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting