An exceptional 67-year-old scientist from Sweden, Svante Paabo has emerged as the 2022 Nobel Prize winner in Physiology or Medicine after extracting DNA from the bones of a 40,000-year-old dead body.
We are on twitter, follow us to connect with us - @scholarsregion
— Scholarship Region (@scholarsregion) January 13, 2022
Svante Paabo who has been working on the discovery project for decades was not only able to extract DNA from the 40,000-year-old human bones but was also able to sequence the genome of the Neanderthal, an extinct relative of present-day humans.
Svante Paabo was able to establish that gene transfer occurred between extinct hominins and homo sapiens, giving rise to to an entirely new scientific discipline; paleogenomics.
According to the Chairman of the Nobel Committee for Physiology or Medicine and a Professor in Medical Biochemistry for the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Dr Nils-Goran Larsson, what Paabo’s work achieved had been considered impossible.
Join any of these WhatsApp Groups to receive Scholarship alerts on WhatsApp
According to a statement on the Nobel Prize organization’s website, Paabo won the prize “for his discoveries concerning the genomes of extinct hominins and human evolution.”
“Paabo’s seminal research gave rise to an entirely new scientific discipline; paleogenomics. By revealing genetic differences that distinguish all living humans from extinct hominins, his discoveries provide the basis for exploring what makes us uniquely human,” the statement added.
Studying in advanced universities in the US, UK and Europe opens you to a lot of opportunities and connects you with world leaders. At Scholarship Region, we keep track of Scholarship opportunities around the world to inform and remind you whenever they are available.
We share a lot of opportunities in our WhatsApp group, join the group using THIS LINK to explore these opportunities. Several scholarship opportunities are ongoing in Europe, USA, UK and Canada to explore. Here are some ongoing scholarships you should check out;
2O22 ONGOING SCHOLARSHIPS
Study-In-Germany: 2023 German Government DAAD Scholarships for International Students
Study-In-Canada: 2023 Toronto School of Management (TSoM) Scholarship For International Students
Study-In-Germany: 2023 DAAD Masters Scholarship for African Students (Fully-funded)
APPLY: 2023 World Trade Organization (WTO) Young Professionals Programme for Developing Countries
Speaking on Paabo’s discovery, the Chairman of the Nobel Committee for Physiology or Medicine and a Professor in Medical Biochemistry for the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Dr Nils-Goran Larsson, said what Paabo’s work achieved had been considered impossible.
“Well, it does tell us that we are very closely related, first of all, and we are so closely related that they have contributed quite directly, 50, 60 thousand years ago, DNA to the ancestors of most people today, those who have their roots outside Africa. And that variation that, sort of, those variants do have an influence, and influence many things in our physiology today,” he said.
Questioned on if the discovery would change how humans viewed themselves today, Dr Nils-Goran said; “In some sense, I do think it does so, the sort of realisation that until quite recently, maybe 14 hundred generations or so ago there were other forms of humans around and they mixed with our ancestors and have contributed to us today.”
“The fact that the last 40 thousand years are unique in human history, in that we are the only form of humans around. Until that time, there were almost always other types of humans that existed,” he added.
Professor Svante Paabo who felt excited about the win explained that he did not think that his work would qualify for a Nobel and never expected a call from the Nobel Committee.
“So I was just gulping down the last cup of tea to go and pick up my daughter at her nanny where she has had an overnight stay. And then I got this call from Sweden and I of course thought it had something to do with our little summer house… I thought the lawn mower had broken down or something,” he narrated.
67-year-old Paabo is one of the founders of paleogenetics and a professor at Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology, Japan.
Receive Scholarship Updates through our Social Media Channels:
- WhatsApp: Scholarship Region WhatsApp
- Facebook: Scholars Region
- Twitter: @scholarsregion
- Telegram: Scholarship Region