ARK Mori Building, East Wing 35th Floor, 1-12-32
Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo, 107-6035, JAPAN
Tel: +81-3-5545-0551 Fax: +81-3-5545-0554
www.japanprize.jp

No. 66

Jul. 2022

2020/2021/2022 Japan Prize Presentation Ceremony
Their Majesties the Emperor and Empress
in attendance at this year’s function

The Japan Prize is awarded to scientists responsible for producing highly creative research in the fields of science and technology
around the world ‒ research that has made significant contributions to the peace and prosperity of humanity. The presentation
ceremony for this year’ s recipients was held on Wednesday April 13, 2022 at the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo’ s Chiyoda Ward, and in
attendance were Their Majesties the Emperor and Empress.
The 2022 recipients of the Japan Prize were joined by the 2021 and 2020 recipients whose ceremonies had been postponed, such thatsix individuals traveled to Japan to be presented with their certificates, medals, and prize money. The original prize money of 50,000,000
yen was increased to 100,000,000 yen for recipients in 2020 onwards. Prof. Bert Vogelstein and Dr. Robert Weinberg, the 2021 winners in
the fields of Medical Science and Medicinal Science, were unable to travel to Japan to attend the ceremony due to COVID-19 travel
restrictions, so they will be presented their prizes in the USA at a later date.
The following recipients were able to attend: Prof. Katalin Karikó and Prof. Drew Weissman (Materials and Production, 2022) and Prof.
Christopher Field (Biological Production, Ecology/Environment, 2022); Prof. Martin Green (Resources, Energy, Environment, Social
Infrastructure, 2021); and Prof. Robert G. Gallager (Electronics, Information, Communication, 2020 ) and Dr. Svante Pääbo (Life Science,2020).
Nominations for the Japan Prize are received from roughly 15,000 experts in Japan and other countries annually, and the rigorous
screening process to select recipients from the pool of nominees takes almost an entire year. There were 208 nominees for the 2022
Japan Prize in Materials and Production and 138 nominees for the 2022 Prize in Biological Production, Ecology/ Environment. In 2021,
there were 142 nominees for the Resources, Energy, Environment, Social Infrastructure prize and 243 nominees for Medical Science andMedicinal Science. Finally, for the 2020 Japan Prize, there were 185 nominees for Electronics, Information, and Communication and 293
nominees for Life Science.

The establishment of the Japan Prize was motivated by the Japanese
government's desire to create an internationally recognized award that would
contribute to scientific and technological development around the world. With
the support of numerous donations, the Japan Prize Foundation received
endorsement from the Cabinet Office in 1983.
The Japan Prize is awarded to scientists and engineers from around theworld who have made creative and dramatic achievements that help progress
their fields and contribute significantly to realizing peace and prosperity for all

humanity. Researchers in all fields of science and technology are eligible forthe award, with two fields selected each year in consideration of current
trends in scientific and technological development. In principle, one individualin each field is recognized with the award, and receives a certificate, a medal,
and a monetary prize. Each Award Ceremony is attended by the current
Emperor and Empress, heads of the three branches of government and otherrelated officials, and representatives from various other elements of society.

Address by His Majesty the Emperor
It brings me great pleasure today to be here at
the Japan Prize Presentation Ceremony, together
with distinguished participants and guests frommany different countries and regions of the world.
On the occasion of this esteemed ceremony, I would
like to extend my heartfelt congratulations to eachof the distinguished laureates: Professor RobertGallager, Doctor Svante Pääbo, Professor Martin
Green, Professor Bert Vogelstein, Doctor RobertWeinberg, Professor Kata lin Karikó, Professor
Drew Weissman and Professor Christopher Field.
Professor Ga llager proposed the utilisation ofreliable and efficient ‘LDPC codes’ as schemes for
detecting and correcting errors in digital informationand communications. This theory has proved highly
effective with the rapid improvement of computer
processing capability, and has become an extremely
important part of basic technology that supports themodern digital society.
Doctor Pääbo has successfully decoded the Neanderthal
genome for the first time in the world by adopting a
genetic method of extracting and ana lysing DNA
fragments from ancient human bones. His method hassince yielded findings that have led us closer to the core of
the evolution of modern humans and shed new light on
the birth and evolution of the modern human species.

Japan Prize WEEK

1April 13

April 14

Presentation Ceremony

Commemorative Lectures

Professor Green has been dedicated to the improvement

advanced t he formula to express t he impact ofof the energy conversion efficiency of crystalline siliconenvironmental variables on photosynthesis. He thenphotovoltaic devices since the 1970s and has succeeded infurther refined the model to reveal the distribution of

inventing practical devices that are superior in both

CO 2 absorption in the global biosphere and the causes

performance and cost. At present, this technology hasof the increase in atmospheric CO 2 concentration,

become the mainstay of solar power generation, and his

thereby facilitating the prediction of future climate

research has contributed significantly to its popularisation.

change.

Professor Vogelstein and Doctor Weinberg proposed

I would like to convey my deepest respect to eacha nd verif ied t he mult i- step ca rcinogenesis model ,of these eminent researchers whose studies haveaccording to which cancer is caused by multiple genecont r ibuted i m mensely to t he development ofmutations occurring in stages within a single cell. The

various scientific and technological fields and to theelucidation of the process underlying the transformation

well-being of humanity.

of nor ma l cel ls into ca ncer cel ls ha s cont r ibuted

Presently, people around the world, including Japan,

significantly to the development of modern cancer

are facing various challenges due to the impact oftherapies.

COVID-19. Under the prevailing circumstances, theProfessors Karikó and Weissman discovered thatrole of science and technology seems to becomeby replacing messenger-RNA-constituent uridine

increasingly crucial.

with a modified nucleic acid called pseudouridine,

It is my sincere wish that by gathering the wisdom

they could suppress the undesired immune responseof various fields and by the people of the world joining

at the time of administration as medicine. This

forces with one another, we can overcome the current

research paved the way for medical applications andchallenges and build a future full of promise.

became the key contributing factor in the swift

I would like to conclude by expressing my earnest
hope that the Japan Prize will further contribute todevelopment of the COVID-19 vaccine.
Professor Field developed a device that can measure

the advancement of science and technology to bring

the photosynthetic rate and transpiration of living

happiness to people, and also contribute to theleaves while the plant remains rooted in the soil, andpeace and prosperity of humankind. Thank you.

April 15

Courtesy Callon the Prime Minister

Award DinnerMedia Interview

2Field：Materials and Production

For pioneering research contributing to the development of mRNA vaccines

The 2022 Japan Prize

Prof. Katalin Karikó
Born: 17 January 1955

Based in: Hungary, USA

Senior Vice President, BioNTech SE
Adjunct Professor, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania
Professor, University of Szeged

Message from the Laureate

It is an incredible honor to receive the 2022 Japan PrizeI am very grateful to all of those who have helped mealong with my fellow scientist, Drew Weissman, withthrough the years: my family, my teachers and mentors,

whom I have worked shoulder-to-shoulder through theand all the fellow students and scientists. Thanks for theiryears. It is a great privilege to belong to the group of

support, their generosity and inspiration.

scientists who were the Japan Prize recipients in the prioryears.

My journey from the humbled beginning demonstrates
that it doesn’t matter where you start, you can achieve soThis very distinguished award puts a spotlight on themuch if you put your mind to it and do not give up. So, I

importance of scientific research and technologicalhope that the recognition I am receiving today will inspire

advancements, as well as international collaboration. All of

the future generation and they too would like to be athese were so crucial for the development of the mRNAscientist.

vaccine. This Prize also recognizes thousands of otherscientists, doctors, and technical experts who over the lastfew decades helped to advance the knowledge acrossdifferent fields that built the foundation for our work.

3

Prof. Katalin Karikó

The 2022 Japan Prize

Prof. Drew Weissman
Born: 7 September 1959

Based in: USA

Professor of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
Director Penn Institute for RNA Innovation

Message from the Laureate

I am truly grateful that work I was involved in has

the page, the implementation and utilization of discovery

helped the world. That’ s the hope of every physician-is open ended. Our work is never over because of thescientist. I am honored to be the recipient of the Japanneed for scientific breakthroughs: not just for thePrize and to be counted among a remarkable group of

current pandemic, but for maladies that have plagued

recipients, which includes my long-time scientific partner,

our world for thousands of years. They need them for

Katalin Kariko, and Ugur Sahin and Özlem Türeci.

infectious diseases, autoimmune diseases, neurologic

At Penn, Dr. Kariko and I investigated mRNA as adiseases, and rehabilitation after trauma.

medical intervention. Importantly, my lab is collaborating

Today, as I take a second to appreciate the goodwith researchers, organizations, and governments aroundfortune that our work has helped millions of people

the world to help them create their own mRNA vaccines

around the world, I also want to recognize the scientists

for COVID-19 and other diseases and therapeutics to

who are “at home” in their own labs right now, fuelingincrease the global supply for people in low- and middle-

the engine of progress, doing the work that may lead toincome countries. And we are taking opportunities tosomething amazing. I’ ll join you back home in my lab

educate people on t he science behind t his often-in the morning...or if I get antsy, maybe in a few hours.

misunderstood vaccine.
Scientists know our work is never over because, as

Together, we’ ll see what the future holds.
Drew Weissman

much as it’s black and white when looking at data on

4

Field：Biological Production, Ecology/Environment

For outstanding contributions to estimation of global biospheric productivity
and climate change science using advanced formulas based on observation

The 2022 Japan Prize

Prof. Christopher Field
Born: 12 March 1953

Based in: USA

Professor for Interdisciplinary Environmental Studies, Director,
Woods Institute for the Environment, Stanford University

Message from the Laureate

Thei r majest ies t he Emperor a nd Empres s ,My research underscores the value of nature in

distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen; I want tohelping solve the climate crisis, but it also highlights

express my deep g rat itude to t he Japa n Pr ize

the critical importance of redoubling our efforts toFoundation and the nation of Japan for recognizing myt a ck le t he cl i m at e cr is is a nd prot e ct E a r t h ’s

work wit h t he 2 0 2 2 Japa n Prize in t he a rea of

ecosystems.

Biological Production, Ecology and Environment. I am
honored and humbled.

I am deeply grateful for this recognition and for theopportunity to reinforce its messages about the

Recognition with the Japan Prize provides me with

importance of research and, as stated in the Cabinet

an opportunity to extend my thanks and acknowledge

Endorsement of the Japan Prize in 1983, furthering

the contributions of the many family members ,the cause of peace and prosperity of mankind. Thankmentors, students, and collaborators who have inspired,

you very much.

improved, and supported the work.
Chris Field

5Field：Resources, Energy, Environment, Social Infrastructure

Development of High-Efficiency Silicon Photovoltaic Devices

The 2021 Japan Prize

Prof. Martin A. Green
Born: 20 July 1948

Based in: Australia

Professor, University of New South Wales (UNSW Sydney)

Message from the Laureate

It is a great honour to receive this award, the 2021 Japan
Prize in the field of “Resources, Energy, Environment andbegan, to the cheapest source of large-scale energy, as
it has now become.

Social Infrastructure”. I acknowledge the Japanese people

I thank these students and colleagues and especiallyand their government for establishing and supporting it.

my wife Judy ‒ my own renewable energy resource ‒The award is a reminder that the quest for inexpensive,

who has given me the freedom to pursue this great

renewable energy is a global quest seeking to sustain thepassion.

trajectory of human civilization on our shared planet.
I have devoted my career to solar, working with myFinally, I thank you again for the lustre and honourof this award.

students and colleagues to take solar cells from an
expensive item only affordable for spacecraft, when I

Martin A. GreenThe 2021 winners in the fields of Medical Science and Medicinal Science, Prof. Bert Vogelstein and Dr. Robert Weinberg, were unable
to travel to Japan to attend the ceremony due to COVID-19 travel restrictions, so they will be presented their prizes in the USA at alater date.

6

Field：Electronics, Information, Communication

Pioneering contribution to information and coding theory

The 2020 Japan Prize

Prof. Robert G. Gallager
Born: 29 May 1931

Based in: USA

Professor Emeritus, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Message from the Laureate

I am pleased and deeply honored to accept the Japan
Prize for my work on error correction codes for data

before thinking and to be impatient with slow careful
thinking.

communication. These codes were impractical for 35

A central challenge for all of us will be learning toyears because of computational complexity, but areuse these new technologies to actually promote peace

now widely used throughout the internet. The internet,

and prosperity for humankind.

as a central component of the information age, holds
great promise to promote “the peace and prosperity of
mankind,” so important as a criterion for the Japan
Prizes. At the same time, our ways of communicating,learning, and thinking are changing so rapidly in theinformation age that we are struggling to integratethem into an improved way of life. We tend to google

7

Robert G. Gallager

Field：Life Science

Pioneering contributions to paleoanthropology through decoding ancienthuman genome sequences

The 2020 Japan Prize

Dr. Svante Pääbo
Born: 20 April 1955

Based in: Sweden

Director, Department of Evolutionary Genetics, Max Planck Institutefor Evolutionary Anthropology

Message from the Laureate

I would like to thank the Japan Prize Foundation for thisgreat honour. It is indeed very rewarding to see that whatstarted as hobby at the side of my official work as a
graduate student has contributed to the establishment ofan entirely new research field.
There were errors and setbacks along the way, but

Asia, and we now know that they, as well as Neandertals,
live on as part of the ancestry of people today.
The development of this research field has been ‒ andcontinues to be ‒ a great adventure!
I accept this honour as a recognition of this field andeverybody who has contributed to it.

today the information extracted from ancient genomes
contributes to our understanding of the evolution and

Svante Pääbo

history of humans and many other organisms.
This research field has given us new perspectives on
how people have moved around our planet and mixed
with each other. And we have learned about a previously
unknown form of humans, the Denisovans, that existed in8Presentation Ceremony

The Japan Prize Award Ceremony for the years 2020, 2021, and 2022 was held at the Imperial Hotel Tokyo in the presence of Their
Majesties the Emperor and Empress. It was attended by Hiroyuki Hosoda (Speaker of the House of Representatives), Akiko Santo (Presidentof the House of Councillors), Naoto Otani (Chief Justice of the Supreme Court), Shinsuke Suematsu (Minister of Education, Culture, Sports,
Science and Technology), and approximately 150 representatives from the academic and business sectors.
Friends and family members of the recipients looked on as each was presented with a certificate and medal by Yoshio Yazaki, Chairman of
the Japan Prize Foundation. Each of the new laureates addressed the audience with their medals in hand, and all expressed their happinessat receiving the award.

9

Prof. Robert G. Gallager

Dr. Svante Pääbo

Prof. Martin A. GreenProf. Katalin Karikó

Prof. Drew Weissman

Prof. Christopher Field

Their Majesties the Emperor and Empress applauding the recipients.

Speaker of the House
Hiroyuki Hosoda delivering
the congratulatory address.

Japan Prize Foundation President
Hiroshi Komiyama delivering
his opening address.

Commemorative concert being performed.

2020/2021/2022 Japan Prize
Commemorative Lectures

Commemorative lectures were given by the 2020, 2021, and 2022 Japan Prize recipients. Prof. Bert Vogelstein and Dr. RobertWeinberg, the 2021 winners in the fields of Medical Science and Medicinal Science, were unable to travel to Japan to attend the
ceremony due to COVID-19 travel restrictions, so they delivered their lectures over video.

Commemorative Lecture Topics
The 2020 Japan Prize
Electronics, Information, Communication

Life Science

From Information Theory to the Information Age

An Ancient DNA View of Human Origins

Prof. Robert G. Gallager

Dr. Svante Pääbo

The 2021 Japan Prize
Resources, Energy, Environment, Social InfrastructureHigh Efficiency Silicon Solar Cells: Invention, Development & Commercialization
Prof. Martin A. GreenThe 2022 Japan Prize
Materials and Production

Biological Production, Ecology/Environment

Developing mRNA for therapy

Nature’s Role in Climate Change Solutions

Prof. Katalin Karikó

Prof. Christopher Field

Nucleoside Modified mRNA-LNP Therapeutics
Prof. Drew Weissman

Commemorative lectures by the 2020, 2021, and 2022 recipients are available for viewing on YouTube.
Please visit the URL below to watch each lecture.

https://www.youtube.com/user/JapanPrize/videos
10

The 2022 Japan Prize
Materials and Production

Theme：Developing mRNA for therapy

Prof. Katalin Karikó

Messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) was discovered in 1961 and the first vaccine based on
mRNA-containing lipid nanoparticles (mRNA-LNP) was approved for treatment of coronavirus disease(COVID-19) in 2021. The structure of mRNA was first revealed by Dr. Furuichi in Japan and then clearlyshown to be strongly associated with translation and subsequent protein production. In 1978, a very
important study was conducted to formulate mRNA for the first time in the laboratory. In 1984,
preparation and commercialization of mRNA were successfully achieved with RNA polymerase. In the
period from 1993 to 1994, mRNA-based vaccine had been developed as a vaccine for infectious diseases.
However, since the vaccine was shown to be effective for only a short period of time, many scientists
decided to abandon efforts to develop new RNA-related drugs, yet other research efforts continued
steadily up to 2021.
I started getting involved in RNA studies from 1989, and gradually became interested in mRNA
encoding therapeutic protein. In a joint study with Dr. Weissman, we identified an issue with the
immunogenicity followed by measurement of the inflammatory molecules, and recognized that nucleosidemodification in transfer RNA (tRNA) is responsible for lacking inflammatory reactions. We thenpurchased multiple modified nucleoside triphosphate products to add to human dendritic cells. We foundthat RNA containing modified uridine did not cause inflammation. The pseudo-uridine-containing mRNA,
produced proteins that were approximately ten times the amount of natural uridine-containing RNA.
Unlike proteins which rapidly decompose, optimized mRNA is shown to be continuously effective as atreatment. Studies with animals suggests that repeated injection can induce immune tolerance andlower-dose injections can enhance production of a very high level of antibodies in test animals.
The COVID-19 vaccine that is the first mRNA-LNP vaccine injected in humans has also been examined
for its efficacy in other clinical studies.

Prof.

The 2022 Japan Prize
Materials and Production

Theme：Nucleoside Modified mRNA-LNP Therapeutics

Prof. Drew Weissman

11

The cost for discovery of drugs focusing on proteins such as monoclonal antibodies is extremely high, andsuch drugs are not always readily available to everyone throughout the world. Drug development focusing on
ribonucleic acid (RNA) on the other hand, is relatively inexpensive and safe, and usage can be easily expanded.
Messenger RNA (or mRNA) covered on its exterior with individual lipid nanoparticles (LNP) has no problems
with the ribonuclease (RNAse) decomposing before reaching the target cells. Orally administered RNA drugs
degrade within two days, while cutaneous vein, intradermal, intramuscular, and subcutaneous injections
however, show continuous effects for two weeks, leading to the conclusion that these injections are ideal for
administering vaccines. In experiments on animals having influenza viruses, human immunodeficiency virus(HIV) envelope immunogens were utilized to enhance antibody responses from T follicular helper cells, andvaccines having the same structure were shown to also exert effects on influenza strains other than the target
strain.
Moreover, the structure of the vaccines was modified to induce expression of a target antibody or target
protein on the surface while still retaining the LNP function for changing the LNP target from the liver ordendritic cells to other organs or cells. Inducing the expression of anti-CD4 antibodies through this approachdemonstrated that the target was changeable from the circulatory system to the lymphatic system byintravenous injection in mice whose organs had been removed.
The approach allows adding various RNA encodings by way of therapeutic proteins, gene editing programs,
and proteins that inserts new genomes to regions where are needed. mRNA-containing lipid nanoparticles(mRNA-LNP) not only proved effective in vaccines but is also a highly promising treatment for myocardial
fibrosis for which only expensive treatment methods have been available up to now, as well as certain
conditions that require genome modification such as sickle cell anemia, Alzheimer-type dementia, andParkinson’s disease.

Prof.

2020/2021/2022 Japan Prize Commemorative Lectures

The 2022 Japan Prize
Biological Production, Ecology/Environment

Theme：Nature’s Role in Climate Change Solutions

based ons diseaseen clearly8, a very
In 1984,
se. In the
diseases.
scientists
continued

n mRNA
with theucleoside
We then
We foundg mRNA,RNA.
ctive as aance andProf. Christopher Field

Since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, a linear relationship between carbon dioxide (CO2)emissions and global warming has been proven. Considering the cumulative CO2 emissions affecting
global warming, emissions would have to drop to zero by 2040 at the earliest and 2080 at the latest. The
results of our study on changes in plant growth, the effects of climate change on temperate forests, andcarbon uptake and loss using a set of techniques called Inverse Modeling indicate that terrestrial CO2
sinks are affected by CO2 fertilization effects, responses to climate change, and past land use. The
challenge for the future is to explore the impact of climate change on this background sink anddetermine whether it can continue to absorb emissions in the future. Moreover, we must identify ways
to strengthen its effectiveness and focus on limiting climate change to protect this background sink,
which is a key element in supporting nature’s role in tackling climate change.
There are several ways to limit climate change. First, we can decrease the amount of deforestationand improve agricultural practices so that soils can lose less carbon. Second, increasing forest andgrassland cover improves absorption rates. Introducing these solutions also brings additional benefits
in terms of biological diversity, habitat quality, and healthy ecosystems.
Unlike solutions that focus on reducing emissions, these natural climate solutions involve the risk of
future CO2 emissions. In addition, we must consider whether protecting forests in one location will leadto increased deforestation elsewhere, especially in other countries. We also face the challenge ofadditionality̶the uncertainty of the amount of the carbon protected in terms of carbon payment.
As a solution to these challenges, I propose the implementation of buffer pools and partial credits, theestablishment of robust standards, and real community engagement.

examined

The 2021 Japan Prize
Resources, Energy, Environment, Social Infrastructure

Theme：High Efficiency Silicon Solar Cells:
Invention, Development & Commercialization

high, andcusing on
expanded.
problems
NA drugs
injections
e ideal forncy virus
cells, andthe target

or target
e liver orapproachystem byprograms,
oparticles
myocardial
as certain
entia, andProf. Martin A. Green

Photovoltaics became a reality with Einstein’s discovery and the resulting quantum mechanics thatdeveloped. The work of Einstein has also led to the development of the basic principles of solar cells. A
solar module is made up of solar cells connected in series. The cost of photovoltaics has declined by afactor of 24 from 2008 to 2020, and solar is now the cheapest way of generating electricity and the mostpopular way of generating electricity to mitigate climate change. To cut back on carbon emissions,various bodies, including the International Energy Agency and the International Panel on Climate
Change (IPCC), have put forward a plan to install the total amount of 1 terawatt of solar a year.
As for the evolution of solar cells, following the discovery of the p-n junction in semiconductors,
spacecraft began to use solar cells to power communication satellites in the late 1950s. In the 1960s,
COMSAT discovered a way to increase the efficiency of silicon solar cells, and in the 1970s, many
countries including the United States and Japan started solar research projects to explore alternative
sources of energy to replace crude oil. Since then, I have been conducting research to improve solar
cell efficiency using the principle of tunneling, and in 2008, succeeded in improving efficiency to 25%.
Today, Kaneka Solartech Corporation has silicon solar cells with the highest conversion efficiency.
However, commercially, the Passivated Emitter and Rear Cell (PERC) that was invented by ouruniversity accounts for over 90% of the world’s total production of solar cells.
The cost reduction in solar photovoltaics is attributed largely to the extensive uptake of PERC
technology, which features improved efficiency, reduced production cost, and enhanced cellfunctionality. We anticipate that there is still more cost reduction to come, which will lead to more solar
uptake and ultimately contribute to climate change mitigation.

12

2020/2021/2022 Japan Prize Commemorative Lectures

The 2020 Japan Prize
Electronics, Information, Communication

Theme：From Information Theory to the Information Age

Dr. Robert G. Gallager

Communication capabilities are the most important difference between humans and other animals.
Communication is an essential skill for humans to work together, to share scientific, psychological,
political, and social ideas, and to share the many joys of living. Dr. Claude Shannon’s paper on
information theory, published in 1948, laid the foundation for the information age. In this paper, heemphasized the importance of enabling the receiver to distinguish between discrete and analog
messages. In a communication system, there are a source where the messages come from, the actual
messages, and the binary data that the messages get turned into; then, there are an encoder thatencrypts the data, a modulator that converts them into the frequency which can be transmitted, a noisy
channel for transmission, a demodulator to remove the noise, and a decoder that decrypts theencrypted data. The practice of encoding message sources into binary data has become almost
universal. With binary data, for n different binary digits used, there are 2n possible messages that canbe communicated. The amount of uncertainty in a message can be identified using entropy in
information theory, thereby allowing for communication.
Adding redundancy to the data is useful to reduce the uncertainty in a bit string by error correction;
how much redundancy that needs to be added can be calculated by identifying the channel capacity.
As networks got bigger, error correction became more important. I developed low density parity check(LDPC) codes as a solution, which are now the standard for 4G and 5G.
The last 50 years have seen tremendous technological advances. We can now search information
easily on the Internet. The challenge in the future is to acquire the capability to find and select thecorrect information from a vast amount of information.

The 2020 Japan PrizeLife Science

Theme：An Ancient DNA View of Human Origins

Dr. Svante Pääbo

13

Humans are said to have originated in Africa some two to four hundred thousand years ago andstarted spreading to the Middle East approximately 70,000 years ago. Our research group compared
genomes from ancient and modern humans and demonstrated that people in our modern world carry
1% to 2 % of the genomes of Neanderthals, people of Mainland Asia carry approximately 0.2% of the
genomes of Denisovans, and about 5% of the genomes of Denisovans are mixed in with those of Papua
New Guinean and Aboriginal Australians.
Studies of ancient genomes can lead to significant medical discoveries. For example, there is a genetic
variant for gene encoding a progesterone receptor and that variant exists outside Africa but can hardly
be found anywhere in Africa. A variant that is associated with preterm birth has been identified in
Neanderthals and Denisovans. We used the UK BioBank to investigate why the variant associated withthe risk of preterm birth is inherited and found that the variant could also decrease the risk of
miscarriages.
Moreover, the chromosome 3 variant related to resistance to the novel coronavirus also suggests anassociation with Neanderthal genomes, showing that this variant may increase the risk of dying fromthe novel coronavirus by approximately two times yet also suppresses human immunodeficiency virus(HIV) infections. The variant in chromosome 12 is a gene to produce an enzyme that degrades viralgenomes in an opposite manner suggesting increased resistance to the novel coronavirus.
Currently, specific genomes in modern humans have been investigated in mice and by using stem
cells in a joint effort with the Max Planck Institute in Germany and Okinawa Institute of Science andTechnology and Kyoto University in Japan, we discovered a genome responsible for chromosome
segregation. Further investigation as to whether or not the chromosome segregation function inancient humans may bring about a difference in brain functions is warranted.

Projects of the Foundation
For the further development of science and technology...
In addition to selecting and awarding the Japan Prize, the Japan Prize Foundation is engaged in projects designed tocontribute to the development of science, technology, and society, including the oﬀering of research grants for the training of young scientists, and our “Easy-to-understand Science and Technology Seminars” aimed at the children who willlead the coming generations.

JAPAN PRIZE

Research Grants

The creation of the Japan Prize was motivated by the Japanese

The “Japan Prize Heisei Memorial Research Grant Program” isgovernment’s desire to “contribute to the development of science

named after Their Majesties the Emperor Emeritus andand technology worldwide by establishing a prestigious

Empress Emerita, who have been interested in the researchinternational award”. Supported by numerous private donations,activities of young scientists and have encouraged them for

the Japan Prize was established in 1983 with a cabinet

many years.

endorsement.

The Foundation provides research grants to scientists mainlyThis award honors scientists and researchers worldwide

under 45 years of age. Every year, the Foundation selects four

who are recognized for having contributed signiﬁ cantly toto eight scientists who undertake knowledge-integrated research

the peace and prosperity of humankind through their originalthat contribute to solving social issues, and gives ﬁve to ten

and outstanding achievements that have greatly advanced themillion yen.

progress of science and technology.
The eligible ﬁelds of this award cover all ﬁelds of science andtechnology. Every year, two ﬁelds for the award presentation are

The Foundation encourages international collaboration ofscientists beyond their expertise.
(An applicant must belong to a research organization in Japan.)chosen by considering the developments in science andtechnology.
As a general rule, one award is given for each ﬁeld and eachlaureate receives a certiﬁcate of merit, a prize medal and acash prize.
The Presentation Ceremony is held annually in the presenceof Their Majesties the Emperor and Empress, and is also
attended by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, thePresident of the House of Councillors, the Chief Justice of theSupreme Court, various ministers, as well as eminent ﬁguresfrom various circles.

“Easy-to-UnderstandScience and Technology Seminars”
The Foundation holds a series of public and student seminars
on advanced technologies commonly used in everyday life byinviting experts, who will
explain state-of-the-artt e c h no l og ie s i n pl a i n
ter ms . The prog ra mbegan in March 1989 andhas since executed morethan 300 seminars acrossJapan by the end of 2019.

14

Donating to our Foundation
Any donations to our foundation will be greatly appreciated.
The money will go towards expanding our activities.
If you wish to make a donation or have any queries, please contact our oﬃce.
Our foundation is a certiﬁed Public Interest Incorporated Foundation whichfalls under the category of “Special Public Interest Promotion Corporation”.
Personal or corporate, any donation to our foundation will be given
preferential tax treatment according to the tax laws.

www.japanprize.jp
ARK Mori Building, East Wing 35th Floor, 1-12-32 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo, 107-6035, JAPAN
Tel: +81-3-5545-0551 Fax: +81-3-5545-0554