``The Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet has decided to award The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for 2001 jointly to Leland H. Hartwell, R. Timothy (Tim) Hunt and Paul M. Nurse for their discoveries of `key regulators of the cell cycle.'

``This year's Nobel Laureates in Physiology or Medicine have made seminal discoveries concerning the control of the cell cycle. They have identified key molecules that regulate the cell cycle in all eukaryotic organisms, including yeasts, plants, animals and human. These fundamental discoveries have a great impact on all aspects of cell growth. Defects in cell cycle control may lead to the type of chromosome alterations seen in cancer cells. This may in the long term open new possibilities for cancer treatment.''

Press release:
http://www.nobel.se/medicine/laureates/2001/press.html

Comment: Note that many key discoveries have been done on yeast model systems. It is a success of the yeast research community and also great stimulation for young yeast researchers.