In 1982, the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded jointly to Sune K. Bergstrom, Bengt I. Samuelsson and John R. Vane “for their discoveries concerning prostaglandins and related biologically active substances.”

John Vane discovered how aspirin worked, a finding that a daily low dose of aspirin prevents heart attacks and strokes, saving millions of lives each year, and the development of angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors for the treatment of hypertension.