Alfred Nobel agonized humanity with his invention of dynamite. His deep sorrow due to devastating effects of dynamite led him work effortlessly for the good of mankind. He founded the Nobel Institute to award people with significant services for the good of mankind. And Nobel became the symbol of hope for humanity. World renowned inventor and industrialist Alfred Nobel was born in Stockholm in 1833. Tutored by the best of his time, Alfred was at first interested in literature despite his father’s strong opposition. However he could not resist his father much longer and studied chemical engineering. By the age of 17, he could already speak five languages. He worked with genius chemist Pelauze in Paris, a city he was in love with. As an important twist of fate in the history, there he met Italian Ascanio Sobrero, who later helped him develop nitroglycerin to make “dynamites”. Getting the patents of his discovery, he planned to use it in industry. He thought it would be easier to dig mines with dynamite. However, his invention virtually slipped down from his hands and exploded across the whole world, as it turned out to become a killing weapon that ended thousands of lives during wars. He was aware of the damage he caused unintentionally and decided to compensate it for the better of humanity. Establishing the Nobel Institute with cooperation of the Royal Swedish Academy of Science, Swedish Academy, Karolinska Institute and Norwegian Nobel Committee, he aimed to award people who had realized significant things for better of humanity. Initially, successful projects in the areas of physics, chemistry, literature, peace, physiology and medicine were awarded monetary prizes funded by the Nobel Institute, to . One of the most prestigious
in the world, Nobel Prizes began to be awarded in 1901. Nobel Physiology and Medicine Laureate scientists since then offered remedies for many diseases and gave people hope
for a better future. We compiled some of the most important inventions in the history of medicine since 1901.

EMIL ADOLF VON BEHRING

German bacteriologist von Behring founded the base for immunology science
with his significant studies on preventing tetanus and diphtheria using
protective serums. He discovered that if a healthy animal was vaccinated
with the blood serum of a tetanic animal, it would resist the microbe even
in fatal doses of tetanus microbe. He used the same approach for curing
diphtheria as well. Continuing his studies, he also developed a vaccine for
tuberculosis in cows.

RONALD ROSS

English physician Ronald Ross revealed how malaria is contaminated by
anopheles in his studies, and was later rewarded with Nobel Prize for his efforts
on developing the cure. Ross spend many long hours observing every type
of mosquitos in microscope and discovered a different type of cell in a female
anophele. On that cell, he sighted a black dot resembling the malaria parasite
found in humans. And that was the moment of discovery for the remedy of
malaria which had caused many casualties especially in the continent of Africa.

IVAN PAVLOV

Physiology professor at Russian Military Medical Academy, Pavlov constituted
the modern gastroenterology with his studies on production of secretion in
digestive glands. His experiments on animals resulted in many new surgical techniques.
He collected secretions from animals’ stomach, pancreas, intestines and
salivary glands so as to show the relation between neural and digestive systems.
He marked his place in history with his reputable “dog” experiment. He won the
Nobel Prize for his studies on digestive and neural systems. The route he opened
gave way to many developments in both behavioral science and gastronomy.

ROBERT KOCH
Having found the tuberculosis microbe, one of the most critical threats in the
history of mankind, and developing potential remedies for it, German scientist
Koch was deemed worthy of the Nobel Prize in 1905. Koch’s contributions
were not only limited to tuberculosis microbe; he also discovered the cholera
microbe and discovered the contamination of sleepy sickness was by tsetses.
Renowned as one of the most important scientists of the 20th century, Koch
developed a vast number of vaccines throughout his life. He played a significant
role in the eradication of many diseases from history of humanity.

FREDERICK GRANT BANTING VE JOHN JAMES RICKARD MACLEOD
The insulin medicine used to treat diabetes, a vitally critical illness that still prevails, was
first discovered in the collaborative studies of Banting and Macleod. Thanks to their
discovery, reasons causing diabetes were revealed and insulin was began to be used to
stabilize the effects of the disease. These two Canadian scientists were rewarded with
Nobel Prize for their efforts in observing the abnormal rise of glucose levels in blood
and the traces of glucose in urine which caused slow death. They found that illness was
started from pancreas, so they injected the insulin that pancreas could not produce by
itself in order to balance blood glucose levels. That invention saves many lives ever since.

KARL LANDSTEINER
Austrian scientist initiated a new era in serology and immunology as part of his
studies to determine human blood groups. Thanks to his efforts, today, blood
treatments are possible in every phase of medicine and curations are much more
accurate and faster. Blood transfusion between humans resulted in deaths since
the 17th century. It was already banned in many countries by the 19th century. His
studies at the time carried the science of medicine to a whole new level and he
was given the Nobel Prize in 1930. He studied also on other critical blood related
illnesses such as syphilis and poliomyelitis, as well.

GEORGE HOYT WHIPPLE
Being the child of a doctor parents, George Hoyt was born into the science
of medicine. He was interested in pathology and biomedical researches. He
received Nobel Prize in 1934 for his studies in liver treatment at anemia cases.
He discovered the disorder occurred as a result of abnormal lipid accumulation
in ileocaecal walls. He made history with the treatments of anemia and
other liver diseases.

CHARLES BRENTON HUGGINS
American pathology and virology expert, Peyton experimented on chickens
to discover that viruses caused cancer. That discovery, bringing cancer
researches to a new level, revealed the possible vaccine treatment of cancer
cells which saved many lives especially with prostate cancer. Huggings’
studies contributed a lot to the development of the cure for cancer, which is
still being investigated. He received his Nobel in 1966.

ALLAN M. CORMACK, GODFREY N. HOUNSFIELD
As two scientists working on X rays studies, Cormack and Hounsfield developed
computerised tomography which opened a new period in the diagnosis of illnesses,
together. They received Nobel in 1979. The method they developed was
based on the X-ray machine which sent X-rays to an object from different angles
to capture three dimensional images of its inner structure. This method enabled
imaging of brain and inner systems of human body, which after all, contributed
to treatment of illnesses faster and in more practical ways.

JOSEPH E. MURRAY, E. DONNAL THOMAS
As two colleagues at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Murray and
Thomas studied on organ and cell transplantation in the treatment of diseases
which contributed a lot to the development of medicine. They received
their Nobel Prize in 1990 for their bone marrow transplantation technique developed
against leukemia, one of the modern illnesses that primarily affects
children. They left their mark in history as two scientists making progress in
the treatment of leukemia.

SIR MARTIN EVANS
Thanks to his contributions to the treatment of “stem cell”, the big hope and
future of humanity, Evans was given the Nobel Prize in 2007. Sir titled scientist
made a huge progress in stem cell treatments of cancer and cardiac-vascular
diseases, which are the most two critical moddern day threats. Continuing
researches on tissue development in the laboratory environment, Evans is
currently trying to produce artificial heart, vein and tissue with stem cells. On
the other hand, his studies on finding the secrets of eternal life and antiaging
are closely followed by the public.

SIR ROBERT G. EDWARDS
Putting his signature on the first experiments of genetics and fertilization,
Edwards received his Nobel Prize in 2010. He developed the in-vitro
fertilisation technique during his researches at Cambridge University. Louise
Brown, the first baby of that method, was born in July 25, 1978. And it was
the start of a new era in fertility. Thanks to his studies in finding the cure to
infertility, 4 million tube babies have been born.