2010 Nobel Prize in Chemistry

The 2010 Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded to Ei-ichi Negishi and Akira Suzuki (Japan) and Richard Heck (United States) for the development of palladium-catalyzed cross coupling. Palladium-catalyzed cross coupling is a chemical investigative tool that allows scientists to develop new drugs and electronics, among other things, by facilitating more efficient linking of carbon atoms.

The Heck, Nagishi and Suzuki reactions bring carbon atoms near each other on a palladium substrate. Positioning the carbon atoms this way allows them to be bound together to form molecules that otherwise would be difficult to construct.

About Nobel Prize in Chemistry: The Nobel Prize in Chemistry has been awarded 101 times to 157 Nobel Laureates between 1901 and 2009. Frederick Sanger is the only Nobel Laureate who has been awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry twice, in 1958 and 1980.

Chemistry was the most important science for Alfred Nobel’s own work. The development of his inventions as well as the industrial processes he employed were based upon chemical knowledge. Chemistry was the second prize area that Nobel mentioned in his will.
In 1901 the very first Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to Jacobus H. van 't Hoff for his work on rates of reaction, chemical equilibrium, and osmotic pressure. In more recent years, the Chemistry Laureates have increased our understanding of chemical processes and their molecular basis, and have also contributed to many of the technological advancements we enjoy today.
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.