Nobel Prize 2020 in medicine: Who are Harvey J Alter, Michael Houghton, Charles M Rice?

The discovery saved ‘millions of lives’, the Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institute

Terming their contribution as “decisive”, the Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institute awarded the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine jointly to Harvey J Alter, Michael Houghton and Charles M Rice for the discovery of Hepatitis C Virus.

Harvey J. Alter, Michael Houghton and Charles M. Rice, are seen on a screen as they are announced as the winners of the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. (via REUTERS)

“Harvey J. Alter, Michael Houghton and Charles M. Rice made seminal discoveries that led to the identification of a novel virus, Hepatitis C virus,” the statement of the Nobel Assembly said.

“Prior to their work, the discovery of the Hepatitis A and B viruses had been critical steps forward, but the majority of blood-borne hepatitis cases remained unexplained. The discovery of Hepatitis C virus revealed the cause of the remaining cases of chronic hepatitis and made possible blood tests and new medicines that have saved millions of lives,” it said.

Who are these three winners?

Harvey James Alter: The 85-year-old American medical researcher was awarded the highest award conferred to civilians in United States government public health service, Distinguished Service Medal. He was also awarded with the 2000 Albert Lasker Award for Clinical Medical Research.

At present, he is associated with the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA

Michael Houghton: Michael Houghton is a British scientist, who is presently affiliated with the University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada.

Charles M Rice: Charles M. Rice is an American virologist whose main area of research is hepatitis C virus.Rockefeller University, New York, NY, USA