As usual, the first Monday of October kicks off the week of these awards, which distinguish personalities in the exact sciences, physiology and medicine, as well as in literature and economics.

Established in 1901 in honor of the Swedish scientist Alfred Nobel (1833-1896), discoverer of dynamite, the first Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded to the German Emil Adolf von Behring for his work in serum therapy, especially its application against diphtheria, a study that opened a new path in the field of medical science.

In these disciplines only two Latin Americans as representatives of the region deserved the award, led mostly by the United States, United Kingdom and Germany.

The first of these was the Argentine Bernardo Alberto Houssay, who received it in 1947 for his studies on the influence of the anterior lobe of the pituitary gland on the distribution of glucose in the body, which was important for the understanding of diabetes.

jdt/jav/ro/alb