Awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine for the discovery of the hepatitis C virus | CNN

(Photo by JONATHAN NACKSTRAND / AFP via Getty Images)

(CNN) -

Americans Harvey Alter and Charles M. Rice, as well as Britain's Michael Houghton, were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for the discovery of the hepatitis C virus.

• What you should know about the Nobel Laureates

Nobel Prize in Medicine