ノーベル科学賞 地道な探究心が実を結んだ

The Yomiuri Shimbun
Steady scientific exploration has earned 2 Japanese Nobel prizes
ノーベル科学賞　地道な探究心が実を結んだ

For a second consecutive day, an outstanding feat was achieved.
　２日続きの快挙だ。

Takaaki Kajita, director of the University of Tokyo’s Institute for Cosmic Ray Research, was announced as a corecipient of this year’s Nobel Prize in Physics.
　東京大宇宙線研究所の梶田隆章所長が、今年のノーベル物理学賞を受賞することになった。

The announcement came a day after Satoshi Omura, a distinguished professor emeritus of Kitasato University, was selected as a cowinner of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. We would like to heartily hail a string of honors awarded to these Japanese researchers as Nobel Prize-winners.
　前日には、北里大の大村智・特別栄誉教授に生理学・医学賞が贈られることが決まった。日本人研究者の相次ぐ受賞決定を心からたたえたい。

The award honors Kajita for his success in discovering that neutrinos have mass. Many mysteries remain about the neutrino as an elementary particle, an ultimate constituent of matter.
　梶田さんは、物質の究極の姿である素粒子の中でも、多くの謎が残る「ニュートリノ」に質量があることを突き止めた。

With a group of researchers he headed, Kajita measured neutrinos flying around by using observation equipment set up at the now unused Kamioka Mine in Hida, Gifu Prefecture. Findings from his group’s research provided epoch-making data that made it essential to reconsider basic theories regarding the universe, including the origin of the universe and matter.
　研究グループを率い、岐阜県飛騨市の旧神岡鉱山内に設置した観測装置で、飛来するニュートリノを測定した。宇宙や物質の成り立ちなど、万物の理論に見直しを迫る画期的なデータとなった。

His corecipient, Arthur McDonald, a professor emeritus at Queen’s University, Canada, observed a similar phenomenon by using observation equipment built on the opposite side of the Earth. The awarding of the prize to the two scientists shows that their efforts have come to fruition.
　共同受賞するカナダ・クイーンズ大のアーサー・マクドナルド名誉教授は、地球の反対側にある観測装置で、同様の現象を観測した。両者の協力が結実した。

The theme of their studies has been explored since the 1960s. “It was good that I have properly continued [to carry out observations],” Kajita said with joy.
　このテーマは１９６０年代から探究されてきた。梶田さんは「しっかり（観測を）続けてきたことが良かった」と喜びを語った。

In Japan, the study of elementary particles has been continuously passed on since the late Dr. Hideki Yukawa was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1949, making him the first Japanese to win a Nobel Prize. Kajita’s glory shows that Japan’s tradition in this respect has proved its worth.
　４９年に湯川秀樹博士が物理学賞を初受賞して以来、日本の素粒子研究は綿々と受け継がれてきた。その伝統が生きた。

Fighting diseases

The Nobel Prize given to Omura honors his successful efforts to develop surefire medicines for such diseases as onchocerciasis, also known as river blindness, a parasitic disease prevalent in African and South American nations.
　大村さんの授賞理由は、アフリカや南米に多い寄生虫病・オンコセルカ症（河川盲目症）などの特効薬を開発したことだ。

Omura was selected as a recipient along with William Campbell of Drew University in the United States, who cooperated in the development efforts. They were praised for having “revolutionized therapy for patients.”
　開発に協力した米ドリュー大のウィリアム・キャンベル博士との共同受賞で、「革命的治療をもたらした」と称賛された。

Their achievements can be described as a feat signifying what medical science essentially stands for — that is, saving life.
　人の命を救うという医学の原点に立った業績と言える。

“I’m glad to have been useful to people,” Omura said. Many people may have remembered the late Hideyo Noguchi, a bacteriologist who worked hard to cure and investigate tropical diseases.
　大村さんは「人の役に立てたことがうれしい」と述べた。熱帯病の治療や解明に尽力した野口英世を思い浮かべた人も多かろう。

Microbes living underground or elsewhere create such natural compounds as antibiotics. Omura steadily collected a large number of microbes. He discovered a compound from which Avermectin, a surefire remedy cited in the Nobel award, is derived. And then he finally made his discovery into a marketable product through an industry-academia partnership
　地中などにいる微生物は、抗生物質のような天然化合物を作り出す。大村さんは、多数の微生物を地道に収集した。受賞対象の特効薬「イベルメクチン」のもとになる化合物を見つけ、産学連携で製品化にこぎ着けた。

Tu Youyou, a scientist at the China Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, was also announced as a winner of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for her development of a remedy for malaria.
　マラリアの治療薬を開発した中国中医科学院の屠●●氏も、同時に受賞する。（●は口へんに幼）

The fight against Ebola hemorrhagic fever and other infectious diseases is an important challenge facing the human race. The prizes given to these scientists will provide strong support in the fight against pathogens.
　エボラ出血熱などの感染症対策は、人類の重要課題だ。今回の受賞は、病原体との闘いへの力強い後押しとなろう。

In recent years, Japan’s scientific research has been experiencing a conspicuous decline. This is because of a failure to nurture the next generation of scientists. The number of research papers published by Japanese scientists has been slow to grow.
　近年、日本の科学研究の地盤沈下が目立つ。次の世代が育っていないためだ。研究論文数は伸び悩んでいる。

The awarding of the prizes to the two Japanese researchers is bound to stimulate many scientists in this country. We hope young researchers will pursue even higher goals.
ダブル受賞は多くの研究者の刺激となるに違いない。若い研究者たちには、さらなる高みを目指してもらいたい。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 7, 2015)