Henri Kagan and Kenso Soai Win 2026 Nobel Prize in Chemistry

Henri Kagan and Kenso Soai win 2026 Nobel Chemistry Prize for solving century-old mystery of molecular symmetry.

October 7, 2026 One Min Read

POLICY WIRE — Stockholm, Sweden — The 2026 Nobel Prize in Chemistry has been awarded to Henri B. Kagan and Kenso Soai for their breakthrough research into the manipulation of chemical reactions.

The award, given by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, recognizes their work on non-linear effects and autocatalysis in asymmetric organic synthesis. Their discoveries have helped unravel a long-standing mystery: why living organisms predominantly use one form of certain molecules over its mirror image.

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Kagan, an emeritus professor at Université Paris-Sud, developed methods that enabled chemists to produce a greater excess of one molecular variant. Soai, an organic chemist at Tokyo University of Science, created the first reaction that produced only one of the two possible mirror images. The prize, worth 12 million Swedish kronor, will be split equally between the two laureates.

Reporting by Policy-Wire (PW)

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