STOCKHOLM, (Reuters) – German Benjamin List and Scottish-born David MacMillan were awarded the 2021 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. They developed asymmetric organocatalysis which is a new and innovative tool for molecule construction.

In a statement, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences claimed that organic catalysts are capable of driving a multitude of chemical reactions. Researchers can use these reactions to create anything, from pharmaceuticals and molecules capable of capturing sunlight in solar cells.

These catalysts are both eco-friendly and inexpensive to make, it said.

This prize, which dates back more than 100 years, is presented by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. It is worth 10,000,000 Swedish crowns (1.14 million).

Alfred Nobel, a Swedish businessman and inventor of dynamite, created the Nobel Prizes for Science, Literature, and Peace. Since 1901 they have been given, the first award being made in 1969 for the economics prize.

The chemistry award is the third of this year’s crop of Nobel prizes and follows the prizes for medicine https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/julius-patapoutian-win-2021-nobel-prize-medicine-2021-10-04 or physiology, and physics https://www.reuters.com/lifestyle/science/manabe-hasselmann-parisi-win-2021-nobel-prize-physics-2021-10-05, announced earlier this week.

Marie Curie was the first winner of Chemistry Prize, followed by Fredrick Sanger who took home two prizes.

Seven women won the award, with Jennifer Doudna (Laureate last year) and Emmanuelle Charpentier (Laureates for creating genetic scissors that can modify DNA).

($1 = 8.8020 Swedish Crowns