STOCKHOLM: Chemists Henri B. Kagan and Kenso Soai won the Nobel Chemistry Prize 2026 on Wednesday. Their discoveries explain how chemical reactions can favour one mirror image of a molecule.
The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced the award in Sweden’s capital. It recognises their discoveries of non-linear effects and autocatalysis in asymmetric organic synthesis.
Their research concerns chirality, in which molecules exist in mirror forms resembling left and right hands. Although these forms have similar structures, they can behave differently in medicines.
In 1986, Kagan showed that reactions could produce a greater excess of one mirror form than chemists had expected. His work gave researchers new tools for controlling chemical production.
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Soai later developed a self-reinforcing reaction in which the product helps generate more of itself. By 2003, he demonstrated how a tiny, chance imbalance between mirror forms could grow until one dominated.
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According to the academy, that form can ultimately comprise 99.99% of the product. These discoveries help chemists design reactions for pharmaceutical manufacturing.
The laureates will split 12 million Swedish kronor equally. “I’m very excited to receive the very nice news,” Soai said by telephone. He was shopping near his home when the Nobel committee contacted him.
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Kagan, 95, is professor emeritus at the former Université Paris-Sud in France. Meanwhile, Soai, born in Japan in 1950, holds the same title at Tokyo University of Science.
The literature prize follows on Thursday, with the peace prize on Friday. The economics award will be announced on October 12.
