STOCKHOLM — Two scientists won the Nobel Prize in medicine on Monday for their discoveries into how the human body perceives temperature and touch, revelations that could lead to new ways of treating pain or even heart disease.

Americans David Julius and Ardem Patapoutian separately identified receptors in the skin as part of their work in the field of somatosensation, which explores the ability of specialized organs such as eyes, ears and skin to see, hear and feel.

Julius used capsaicin, the active component in chili peppers, to help pinpoint the nerve sensors that respond to heat, while Patapoutian found pressure-sensitive sensors in cells that respond to mechanical stimulation, the committee said.

“This really unlocks one of the secrets of nature,” said Thomas Perlmann, secretary-general of the Nobel Committee, in announcing the winners. “It’s actually something that is crucial for our survival, so it’s a very important and profound discovery.”

The committee said their discoveries get at “one of the great mysteries facing humanity”: how we sense our environment.

“How are nerve impulses initiated so that temperature and pressure can be perceived?” the committee asked in the announcement. “This question has been solved by this year’s Nobel Prize Laureates.”

Julius, who born in New York and now works at the University of California at San Francisco, said he was awakened by what he thought was a prank phone call shortly before the Nobel was announced.

“My phone sort of bleeped, and it was from a relative who had been contacted by somebody on the Nobel committee trying to find my phone number,” he said from his home in San Francisco, where it was the middle of the night.

It was only when his wife heard Perlmann’s voice and confirmed it was indeed the secretary-general of the Nobel Committee who was calling, that he realized it wasn’t a joke. Julius said his wife had worked with Perlmann years ago.