This gave recognition to Professor Yoshinori Ohsumi  of the Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tokyo, Japan, for his work on discoveries of mechanisms for autophagy. He led pioneering studies that look at how cells break down and recycle their components, which has implications for future therapeutics for conditions such as dementia and cancer. Take a look at an outline of the therapeutic potential of autophagy modulation documented by Rubinsztein, Codogno and Levine. Or, check out a summary of Professor Ohsumi’s work on the TITech website.