Yoshinori Ohsumi

Yoshinori Ohsumi is a Japanese cell biologist whose genetic studies of yeast revealed key mechanisms of autophagy. He received the 2016 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine: An annual Nobel award recognizing discoveries in physiology or medicine. Ohsumi received the 2016 prize for discoveries about autophagy.
Autophagy: A cellular degradation process that delivers cytoplasmic material to lysosomes or vacuoles for recycling. It is the process whose machinery and genetic control Ohsumi investigated.
Saccharomyces cerevisiae: A species of yeast widely used as a model organism in biology. Ohsumi used this yeast to identify genes controlling autophagy.
Autophagy-related disease: Disease associated with impaired or dysregulated autophagy. His discoveries enabled investigation of how defective cellular recycling contributes to disease.
Daniel J. Klionsky: An American cell biologist known for research on autophagy and its regulation. His work helped develop the research field Ohsumi’s yeast discoveries transformed.
Autophagosome: A double-membrane vesicle that encloses cellular material and delivers it to a lysosome or vacuole. Ohsumi’s yeast work clarified how this cargo-carrying structure forms.
Nitrogen starvation: A condition in which cells lack nitrogen needed to synthesize proteins and other molecules. Starving yeast of nitrogen triggered the autophagic activity Ohsumi examined.
Cellular homeostasis: The maintenance of stable internal conditions within a cell despite changing demands. Autophagy helps sustain cellular balance by removing and recycling material.
Christian de Duve: A Belgian cytologist who discovered lysosomes and introduced the term autophagy. His earlier work named the process that Ohsumi later explained genetically.
Vacuole: A membrane-bound organelle that stores and processes materials in eukaryotic cells. In yeast, it is the compartment where autophagic cargo is degraded.

Linked from 3 pages

JAXACompared with: His research exemplifies Japan’s scientific distinction outside JAXA’s aerospace mission.