Henri B. Kagan and Kenso Soai have been awarded the 2026 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their groundbreaking discoveries regarding non-linear effects and autocatalysis in asymmetric organic synthesis. The announcement was made Wednesday by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm. Heiner Linke, chair of the Nobel Committee for Chemistry, noted that Kagan and Soai resolved a century-old chemical mystery surrounding how homochirality can emerge spontaneously, describing their developed reactions as spectacular. According to the committee, their findings have played a crucial role for chemists designing manufacturing reactions for pharmaceuticals. Kagan is a French-born researcher affiliated with Université Paris-Sud in Orsay, France. Soai, who is 95 years old and born in Japan, is affiliated with the Tokyo University of Science. A specific experiment conducted by him is widely known as the Soai reaction. This year’s Nobel announcements began Monday with the medicine prize awarded to three scientists for a light-based tool that explores brain function, followed by the physics prize on Tuesday recognizing research on rare neutrinos. The literature prize is scheduled for Thursday, followed by the peace prize on Friday and the economics prize on Monday. Each Nobel category comes with a cash award of 12 million Swedish kronor, equivalent to roughly $1.2 million, shared among the designated laureates.
Source: npr.org
