Switch to हिंदी

Health, Fitness, Beauty & Diet | Pregnancy & Parenting | Diseases & Home Remedies | TheHealthSite.com

Health, Fitness, Beauty & Diet | Pregnancy & Parenting | Diseases & Home Remedies | TheHealthSite.com

हिंदी
  • Health A-Z
  • Diabetes
  • Diseases
    • Type 1 Diabetes
    • Type 2 Diabetes
    • Cancer
    • Heart Attack
    • Pneumonia
    • Diseases A-Z
  • Diet & Fitness
    • Weight Management
    • Exercise & Body Building
    • Diet & Recipes
    • Yoga
  • Coronavirus
  • News
  • Pregnancy
    • Conceiving
    • Infertility
    • Labour & Delivery
    • Pregnancy week-by-week
    • Breastfeeding
    • Baby Names
  • Beauty
    • Skin
    • Hair
    • Grooming
  • Photos
  • Videos
Home / Health News / Nobel prize in medicine awarded to scientists who found the brain’s GPS system

Nobel prize in medicine awarded to scientists who found the brain’s GPS system

By: Agencies   | | Published: October 8, 2014 8:29 pm
Tags: Brain  In the news  Medicine  Nobel Prize  
brain

Three scientists – John O’Keefe, May-Britt Moser and Edvard Moser – have shared the 2014 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine, the Nobel Committee announced Monday. The Nobel assembly at the Karolinska Institute has decided to award one half of the physiology or medicine prize to John O’Keefe and the other half jointly to May-Britt Moser and Edvard Moser for their discovery of cells that constitute a positioning system in the brain, Xinhua reported. Also Read - Ganesh Chaturthi 2020: 4 reasons an eco-friendly Ganesha is good for you

Also Read - 7 reasons why the #BeefBan is good



According to a statement of the committee, this year’s laureates have discovered an ‘inner GPS’ in the brain that ‘makes it possible to orient ourselves in space, demonstrating a cellular basis for higher cognitive function’. In 1971, John O’Keefe of University College London discovered the first component of this positioning system. He found a type of nerve cell in an area of the brain called the hippocampus that was always activated when a rat was at a certain place in a room. Also Read - Opioid addiction can cause permanent brain changes

Other nerve cells were activated when the rat was at other places. O’Keefe concluded that these ‘place cells’ formed a map of the room. More than three decades later, in 2005, May-Britt and Edvard Moser from the Norwegian Institute of Science and Technology discovered another key component of the brain’s positioning system, announced Nobelprize.org, the official website of the Nobel prize, in a statement.

The couple identified another type of nerve cell, which they called ‘grid cells’ that generate a coordinate system and allow for precise positioning and path finding. Their subsequent research showed how place and grid cells make it possible to determine position and to navigate. ‘The discoveries have solved a problem that has occupied philosophers and scientists for centuries – how does the brain create a map of the space surrounding us and how can we navigate our way through a complex environment,’ the official statement read. (Read: Three scientists share Nobel Prize in Medicine)

Knowledge about the brain’s positioning system may help us understand the mechanism underpinning the devastating spatial memory loss that affects people with Alzheimer’s disease. ‘The discovery of the brain’s positioning system represents a paradigm shift in our understanding of how ensembles of specialised cells work together to execute higher cognitive functions,’ the statement pointed out. The discovery has opened new avenues for understanding other cognitive processes such as memory, thinking and planning, it concluded. (Read: Three British scientists win Nobel prize for discovering how brain navigates)

Source: IANS

Photo source: Getty images

You may also like to read:

  • Neurolinguistic programming can your brain be trained to make you more successful?
  • It s official artists brains are wired differently!
  • Does the sixth sense exist?

For more articles on diseases & conditions , visit our diseases & conditionssection. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter for all the latest updates! For daily free health tips, sign up for our newsletter. And for health-related queries, visit our Questions and Answers section.

Published : October 8, 2014 8:29 pm
Read Disclaimer

Ebola in the US: Dallas patient passes away from disease in Texas hospital

Ebola in the US: Dallas patient passes away from disease in Texas hospital

Scientists identify exactly how type 2 diabetes develops

Scientists identify exactly how type 2 diabetes develops

Please Wait. Article Loading ....

Coronavirus Updates

Coronavirus Updates

Stay Informed, Be Safe

  • Vegetarians are at lesser risk of getting infected by Covid-19 virus: Study
  • Vaccine side-effects will not result in death: AIIMS Director
  • 47% of first beneficiaries in Delhi skipped Day 1 Covid-19 vaccination: Here’s why
  • COVID-19 Live Updates: Cases in India surge to 10,557,985 while death toll reaches 1,52,274
  • Delhi health workers suffer mild reaction post COVID-19 vaccine: What you should expect 

Health Calculators

BMI Calculator
bmi Calculator
Ideal Body Weight
ideal body weight
Daily Calorie Intake
Daily calorie intake
Calories Burned
calories burned

Related Stories

Traumatic brain injury can increase risk of Alzheimer's disease: Tips to avoid head injuries

Traumatic brain injury can increase risk of Alzheimer's disease: Tips to avoid head injuries

Sedative drugs, curb on family visits may increase risk of acute brain dysfunction in Covid-19 ICU patients

Sedative drugs, curb on family visits may increase risk of acute brain dysfunction in Covid-19 ICU patients

Brain cancer could be triggered by the healing process that follows a stroke or other brain injury: Study

Brain cancer could be triggered by the healing process that follows a stroke or other brain injury: Study

New drug-delivery system opens possibilities for treatment of numerous neurological disorders

New drug-delivery system opens possibilities for treatment of numerous neurological disorders

Genes linked to common brain disorder, Chiari 1 malformation, identified

Genes linked to common brain disorder, Chiari 1 malformation, identified

Health News in Hindi

Symptoms of Cervical Cancer: महिलाओं में होने वाले सर्वाइकल कैंसर के 10 गंभीर संकेत और लक्षण

Turmeric for Allergy: हल्दी है हेल्दी! इन 2 तरीकों से करेंगे हल्दी का सेवन तो दूर होगी स्किन एलर्जी

Adnan Sami Weight Loss: अदनान सामी ने बताए अपने वेट लॉस सीक्रेट्स, जानें कैसे 230 किलो के अदनान ने अचीव किया 75 किलो का वेट लॉस गोल

रिपोर्ट आई सामने, उत्तर प्रदेश के मुरादाबाद में 46 वर्षीय वॉर्ड ब्वॉय की मौत कोरोना वैक्सीन लेने से नहीं, इन कारणों से हुई

Pfizer Vaccine: ऑस्ट्रेलिया ने फाइजर टीकाकरण के बाद नॉर्वे में हुई मौतों पर मांगी जानकारी

Read All

Recent Posts

  • Avoid alcohol during Covid-19 vaccination: Experts explain why
  • Irritable bowel syndrome: Why IBS patients experience abdominal pain after eating certain foods?
  • Vegetarians are at lesser risk of getting infected by Covid-19 virus: Study
  • Vaccine side-effects will not result in death: AIIMS Director
  • Beware! Unusual vaginal discharge could be a sign of cervical cancer

About The health Site

TheHealthSite.com is India's largest health site with more than 40 lakh unique visitors per month. We focus on fitness, beauty, health, pregnancy and more.

Most popular health and wellness website in India in 2012 at the Website of the year awards.

health@corp.india.com
+91 – 22 – 6697 1234
Landline Phone number 91 – 22 – 2490 0302.

ZEE ENTERTAINMENT ENTERPRISES LTD, 18th floor, A-Wing, Marathon Futurex, N. M. Joshi Marg, Lower Parel, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400013.

Useful Links

  • Weight Loss
  • Keto Diet Tips
  • Skin Care Tips
  • Intermittent Fasting
  • Apple Cider Vinegar
  • Ashwagandha
  • Cancer
  • Pneumonia
  • Diarrhoea
  • Dengue
  • Typhoid
  • Tuberculosis
  • Chickenpox
  • Chikungunya
  • Depression
  • Hepatitis
  • Diabetes
  • Type 2 diabetes
  • Arthritis
  • Swine Flu
  • Baby Names
  • Cough and cold
  • Heart Attack
  • Breast Cancer
  • Ebola Virus
  • Dengue
  • Malaria
  • International Yoga Day
  • Hypotension
  • Heart Failure
  • Asthma
  • Brain Tumour
  • Celebrity Fitness
  • Goitre
  • HIV/AIDS

We respect your privacy

  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact Us
  • Author Profiles

Copyright © 2021 Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited. All rights reserved.