Deoxyribonucleic Acid

History of DNA’s Discovery  The following Scientist were credited for the discovery of DNA  James Watson  Francis Crick  Maurice Wilkins  Rosalind Franklin  In 1962 James Watson (1928– ), Francis Crick (1916–2004), and Maurice Wilkins (1916–2004) jointly received the Nobel Prize in medicine or physiology for their determination in 1953 of the structure of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). Because the Nobel Prize can be awarded only to the living, Wilkins's colleague Rosalind Franklin (1920–1958), who died of cancer at the age of 37, could not be honored.

What is DNA?  The molecule that is the basis for heredity.  Contains the patterns for constructing proteins in the body, including the various enzymes.  DNA consists of two chains twisted around each other, or double helixes  A new understanding of heredity and hereditary disease was possible once the shape of DNA was determined

Structure of DNA

How was this Discovery Possible  The background for the work of the four scientists was formed by several scientific breakthroughs:  the progress made by X-ray crystallographers in studying organic macromolecules  the growing evidence supplied by geneticists that it was DNA, not protein, in chromosomes that was responsible for heredity  Erwin Chargaff's experimental finding that there are equal numbers of A and T bases and of G and C bases in DNA  Linus Pauling’s discovery that the molecules of some proteins have helical shapes

How was this Discovery Possible  Through collaboration  Through hard work  The use of new technology

Why is it important to us  Helps to explains heredity and hereditary diseases  Treatment of hereditary diseases are now possible  Possible cure one day of hereditary disease  Application to other organisms has lead to new branches in genetic engineering  Can increase the gene pool of the organism

What you did not know  Rosalind Franklin never knew that Watson and Crick had gotten access to her results. At the time of the Watson and Crick publication and afterwards, Franklin appears not to have been bitter about their accomplishment.  After her death, Watson and Crick made abundantly clear in public lectures that they could not have discovered the structure of DNA without her work.