Physiology/Medicine Nobel Awarded for MicroRNA Discovery

This post was originally published on Astrology News Service

Sue Kientz

This week the 2024 Nobel Prizes are being awarded on Tuesday, December 10, the anniversary of Alfred Nobel’s death in 1896. The prizes are always presented on December 10^th each year in Stockholm, Sweden, except for the Nobel Peace Prize, which is bestowed in Oslo, Norway. Beginning in early October each year, when each recipient is informed by a (usually middle-of-the-night) phone call, there is much excitement for those who could be granted this, one of the world’s highest academic honors, which virtually seals one’s reputation in scientific, literary, and political fields, and includes receiving or splitting roughly $1 million per award. Up to three persons can be nominated and win in the fields of Physiology/Medicine, Physics, Chemistry, Literature, and Economic Sciences. The Nobel Peace Prize can be won by up to three individuals or one organization working towards world peace.

Might we see via astrology that these brilliant and talented persons who become Nobel laureates this year, were “ready” to be honored by virtue of their birth date and the subsequent planetary formations now arrived in the heavens? You will indeed see the fortunate configurations each person (and one organization) had (whose birth and origin dates were made available), but no matter how “lucky” each appears, realize there are many other favored outcomes that, for example, other persons born on the same date (even give or take a day or two), working just as hard and in the same fields, can achieve and enjoy. None of this diminishes the amazing achievement of each laureate’s work or the astounding cooperation from the planets which point to great deeds and honors for this latest group of honorees. Here are the 2024 Nobel Laureates in their “time” view that includes their planetary dressage:

Physiology/Medicine Nobel Winners

Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun are to be honored for their work discovering microRNA and its role in post-transcription gene regulation. It’s been decades since these scientists began publishing their findings, which Ruvkun said at the time just seemed “very interesting,”(1) not realizing all that would come of this crucial discovery.

Victor Ambros (born December 1, 1953)(2), shows his scientific bent with several personal planets (i.e., Sun, Mercury, Mars, Venus) in configuration with Uranus (scientific discovery and invention) and dwarf planet Makemake (breakthroughs ahead of its time, cutting-edge insights). For example, his Sun (9 Sagittarius) is sesquiquadrate (135 degrees) Uranus (22 Cancer) and Makemake (26 Cancer); his Mercury (18 Scorpio) is trine (120 degrees) Uranus/Makemake; his Venus (24 Scorpio) is trine Uranus/Makemake, and Mars (18 Libra) is firmly in range square (90 degrees) Uranus/Makemake. (We cannot inspect the Moon relationship with no time of birth.) So many aspects of Ambros’ life have been touched by a great interest and excitement in knowing more about nature’s deepest secrets. Ambros is also fortunate to have his Mars trine Jupiter (23 Gemini), enabling his actions and decisions to lead him to success in his endeavors.

In an October interview, however, Ambros explained he had no reason to expect a Nobel for his work, as the 2006 Physiology Nobel Prize included the use of microRNA.(3) But looking at the planetary transits in force now, it’s easy to see why 2024 was his year nevertheless. Firstly, generous Jupiter (15 Gemini) is transiting opposite his Sun as he is on the precipice of receiving his award. Dwarf planet Makemake (11 Libra), harbinger of excitement itself, is sextile his Sun, and Uranus (24 Taurus), initiator of the scientific revolution, is opposite both his Mercury and Venus. Neptune, representing medical care and so the uses Ambros’ discovery makes possible, is trine his Venus. Remember, all planets past Saturn usually can make only a few major contacts with one’s personal planets. Uranus usually reaches only one opposition to a personal planet in one’s lifetime (unless one lives past 84 and was born with that opposition), and with Makemake’s 306-year orbit, one experiences only a few of its major aspects, and hopefully one is a trine or sextile. An additional fortunate formation for Ambros is transiting Sun (19 Sagittarius) sextile and Jupiter trine his Mars. Any of these configurations would be a delight to experience, some great excitement and success, but when it’s a Nobel Prize, you see how they come in clusters, all at once.

The other recipient of the Physiology Nobel for microRNA is Gary Ruvkun, born March 26, 1952,(4) who also has the natal chart of a scientist with a biology bent. His Sun (5 Aries) is square Uranus (9 Cancer); Mercury (20 Aries) and Jupiter (22 Aries) both square Makemake (22 Cancer) and oppose Neptune (20 Libra); Venus (12 Pisces) is trine Uranus; and Mars (18 Scorpio) is trine Makemake. Here is someone not just displaying scientific talent and interest, but with an expansive mind (Jupiter conjunct Mercury) that is unconventional, an original thinker (square Makemake), able to apply observations to an entire system (opposite Neptune).

With such starting positions, the year 2024 has much to bestow of value, beginning with transiting Venus (4 Aquarius) sextile his Sun with Makemake (11 Libra) opposite his Sun, on the day of the Nobel award presentations; Sun (19 Sagittarius) sextiles his Mercury; Saturn (13 Pisces) conjoins his Venus (crystallizing his value and his finances, very likely! Saturn is not a negative for Venus at such an occasion and is often seen in Nobel award charts) while Jupiter (15 Gemini) squares his Venus. Lastly, transiting Uranus (24 Taurus) opposes Ruvkun’s Mars while Saturn trines his Mars. Plus something else that’s special. You may have noted that Ruvkun’s Mars and Ambros’ Mercury lie in the same degree (18 Scorpio), representative of their shared career aims, but they both currently enjoy significant support from two other dwarf planets not yet mentioned, via a double sextile. Dwarf planet Orcus (17 Virgo), intuiting order, meaning, and how things fit together, and (currently unnamed) 2002 MS4 (17 Capricorn), shown to signify love of learning and ability to do deep research, are sextile Ruvkun’s Mars and Ambros’ Mercury from either side. These two “supporters” will remain in sextile for the next few years, suggesting further discovery and knowledge eliciting from Ruvkun and Ambros’ stunning achievement discovering this essential component of the cell’s transcription process. 

Check back for more analysis of this year’s Nobel prize recipients, throughout this week.

Title Image credit: Background: By Photograph, JonathunderMedal: Erik Lindberg (1873-1966) – Derivative of File:NobelPrize.JPG, PD-US, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=58432969. Text by the author.

Notes and References

• (1) Smith, Adam. “Gary Ruvkun Interview, First Reactions,” 7 October 2024, NobelPrize.org, https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/2024/ruvkun/interview/
• (2) Ambros, Victor, 1 December 1953, Hanover, NH, USA, 7 a.m. ET used, https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/2024/ambros/facts/
• (3) Smith, Adam. “Victor Ambros Interview, First Reactions,” 7 October 2024, NobelPrize.org, https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/2024/ambros/interview/
• (4) Ruvkun, Gary, 26 May 1952, Berkeley, CA, 7 a.m. PT used, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gary_Ruvkun

Author Bio

Sue Kientz specializes in astrology’s mid-sized planetary bodies, the largest asteroids and massive trans-Neptunian dwarf planets Eris, Makemake, Haumea, and others discovered this century. Her experience researching the latter led to her book More Plutos, which received a 2016 eLit Award. More Plutos also addresses how resonance, fractals, and intuition can explain how astrology works. Sue argues that the dwarf planets are astrology’s great breakthrough, equivalent to what microorganisms did for medicine. Website: MorePlutos.com; Facebook: www.facebook.com/MorePlutos; E-mail: [email protected]