2019 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine: Celebrating the Winners

The 2019 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was jointly awarded to William G. Kaelin Jr, Sir Peter J. Ratcliffe and Gregg L. Semenza “for their discoveries of how cells sense and adapt to oxygen availability”. Collectively, their research led to an understanding of the elegant mechanism cells use to respond to changes in oxygen levels, a fundamental process that underpins normal physiologic functioning and plays a critical role in several diseases, including cancer. Via a combination of oxygen-dependant targeted destruction of the Hypoxia Inducible Factor and modulation of gene expression, cells are equipped to survive in a fluctuating environment. This pioneering research helped pave the way towards a plethora of medications that target this pathway. In celebration of their success, we have featured some of their articles in this collection, which includes content from Oncogene, British Journal of Cancer, Pediatric Research, Gene Therapy, Cell Death and Disease, and the Journal of Human Hypertension.