The 2026 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to Henri B. Kagan at Paris-Saclay University and Kenso Soai at the Tokyo University of Science for their work on manipulating the synthesis of chiral molecules. C&EN reporter Bri Barbu joins host Gina Vitale to discuss what these chemists discovered, how their insights are now applied to medicines, and how their work shed light on the origin of life itself.
Bri's story on the Chem Nobel: https://cen.acs.org/people/nobel-prize/chemistry-nobel-chirality-kagan-soai/104/web/2026/10
More about Donna Blackmond: https://cen.acs.org/biological-chemistry/origins-of-life/closer-understanding-origins-biological-homochirality/104/web/2026/05
C&EN's story on the physiology or medicine prize: https://cen.acs.org/people/nobel-prize/nobel-2026-physiology-medicine/104/web/2026/10
C&EN's story on the physics prize: https://cen.acs.org/people/nobel-prize/nobel-prize-physics-halzen-neutrino-icecube/104/web/2026/10
Audio Producer: Jeremy Barr
Music: Shutterstock
Reporter: Bri Barbu
Host: Gina Vitale
Contact Stereo Chemistry on social media at @cenmag or email cenfeedback@acs.org.
