Abstract
This paper explores the history and some interesting facts about DNA. The last couple centuries have seen an exponential growth in our knowledge of DNA. The history of the DNA can be traced back to multiple devoted scientist. This article attempts to summarize, and review the basic history of DNA while providing some fascinating information about it.
A Brief Historic Review Throughout the early 19th and 20th century, many scientists have studied deoxyribonucleic acids in order to attain higher understanding over the matter. Johann G. Mendel had figured out and understood the laws of heredity. Friedrich Miescher amazingly discovered DNA in 1869, even though scientists did not understand DNA was the genetic material
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The pictures were shown to James Watson and Francis Crick by Maurice Wilkins. They were then able to confirm their theory about the 3D structure of DNA. In 1962, they were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for solving the structure of DNA. The Nobel committee could not award it to Franklin because the Nobel prize could only be shared by three people and also because she was already dead (DNA from the Beginning, 2011)
Origin of the Four Bases’ Names The four names of the nitrogenous bases of the DNA are adenine, thymine, guanine, and cytosine. The word "adenine" was created in the 19th century in German from the Greek words “adēn” "gland" and "in". The word "cytosine" was coined in the 19th century from the German word "cytosin" from cyto- "cell", -ose and the chemical suffix -ine. The word "guanine" comes from the English words "guano" and "ine" and was also created in the 19th century. The word “thymine” comes from words “thymus” and the suffix -ine.
Interesting Facts Although DNA molecules seem minuscule, if all the DNA in a human body was unwound and placed from end to end, it would cover about 10 billion miles. That's approximately the same distance as traveling from the Earth to Pluto and back. (Helmenstine, 2017). “If a person typed 60 words per minute, eight hours a day, it would take approximately 50 years for them to type the human genome” (Kawasaki, 2010). Scientist have calculated that DNA has a 521-year half-life, which
The discovery of deoxyribonucleic acid, more commonly known as DNA, has been the foundation for much scientific work. This fundamental discovery was credited to James Watson and Francis Crick. Many people believe that another person, Rosalind Franklin, also played a large role in the research. How much did she contribute to the discovery? Why is her name left unrecognized? This paper will discuss her part in the search and whether her name should appear next to Watson's and Crick's as the co-discoverer of DNA.
Scientist in early 1950s James Watson a biologist from Indiana University and Francis Crick a physicist were working at lab to discover the structure of DNA. The primary technique for structural analysis of biological molecules is X-rays. The wave length of X-ray is about the same as the space between the atoms in crystal matters. We learn and know that genetic information was carried on chromosomes made up of DNA and protein. Maurice decided and taken the first x-ray picture of DNA that lead him to suggest the DNA structure might be a helix. Watson was able to rely on Wilkins' research. If he had not, he may have not been the one to discover the structure of DNA. The biggest thing I learned from my research is that scientists can’t make discoveries
Another scientist that made a huge contribution to the discovery of DNA was Frederick Griffith. He hypothesized that somehow information could be transferred between different strains of bacteria. For his experiment
The origins of DNA were first discovered during 1857 by Gregor Mendel the "Father of Genetics”, whom was performing an experiment of genetics with pea plants, and would provide a basic foundation towards DNA and Genetics. Friedrich Miescher and Richard Altmann in 1869 were also part of the first people to discover DNA. While testing some sperm of a salmon, they discover a strange substance that they would name as "nuclein", which is known as DNA. This new form of "nuclein" (DNA) would be found to only exist in chromosomes. Frederick Griffith, a researcher, found the basis on DNA, from a molecule inheritance experiment involving mice and two types of pneumonia. His findings were that, when virulent disease is heated up (to kill) and is
Deoxyribo nucleic acid is discovered by the decades of efforts made by the scientists. The history of the discovery of structure of DNA started in 1953 when Watson and crick discovered the structure of DNA. It is the blue print of life. It is a code and means of storing genetic information.
Sixty-five years ago, the structure of DNA was unknown. In contrast to other sciences such as chemistry, which dates to around the time of the Egyptians, and physics, which came into vogue during the 1600s, molecular biology is truly a modern phenomenon. Until 1952, many biologists continued to believe that proteins carried genetic material. The next year, In 1953 James Watson and Francis Crick published their findings on the structure of DNA. Their proposition states that DNA consists of a double helix with alternating deoxyribose and phosphate molecules in the backbone.
n the early 1950’s, James Watson, Rosalind Franklin, Francis Crick, and Maurice Wilkins stumbled upon a detailed understanding into the structure of DNA. This is very far from what we would expect from the cohesion of such different people; a bird biologist, an expert in coal structure, a nuclear physicist, and a designer of underwater mines. They used their own understandings, and the ones of many different researchers to find out how traits are passed down to offspring, among all living things.
Rosalind Franklin and Maurice Wilkins used x rays to study DNA. Their research let James Watson study the structure of DNA. Watson ended up discovering that the structure of DNA is a double helix in 1953. All their research helped develop the DNA theory.
Francis Crick, Rosalind Franklin, James Watson, and Maurice Wilkins were all examples of scientists that came together to help form the detailed understanding of the structure of DNA that human civilization has today. The question that was solved by their work was, how do living organisms pass on traits to their offspring? The discovery was like a puzzle that was put together over time. Different scientists over the ages added a piece here and there. An example is Gregor Mendel. He worked with plants and observed the traits that were passed down from the parents to the offspring. By the 1950s, biologists found that chromosomes contain proteins along with DNA. This made scientists wonder how DNA could hold all the information needed to create
A Cambridge University scientists James D. Watson & Frances Crick both announce that they have determined the structure of the double-helix DNA. The DNA is a molecule that contains human genes. The DNA was discovered in 1869, determining a genetic role that was demonstrated in 1943. The morning of February 28, both men determined that the structure of DNA was a double-helix polymer, which also can be described as a spiral of two DNA strands. Each strand contains a long chain of monomer nucleotides, that are wound around each other.
The men exemplified exploration by looking into the works of Linus Pauling, a scientist who had released his discoveries of the proteins found in DNA, during the mid 1930s. In addition, the x-rays of DNA photographed by Maurice Wilkins and Rosalind Franklin in the early 1950s contributed in the finalized DNA structure (Cobb). From Francis and James’ article, Genetical Implications of the Structure of Deoxyribonucleic Acid, it describes how genes can carry specific chromosomes onto later generations. They supported their hypothesis by including the information gathered from Franklin, Wilkins, and Pauling. If it weren’t for their earlier exploration of other people’s ideas, these two men would never have been able to conduct enough experimentation in order to actually construct a model of DNA.
The idea of sitting in an airport and seeing someone walk past that looks identical to you may seem absurd, but due to new scientific development it may not stay that way for long. In 1953 two scientists by the names of James Watson and Francis Crick discovered the structure of DNA.1 DNA can be defined as the makeup of chromosomes, which carry genetic information.
DNA, or deoxyribonucleic acid, contains all the genetic information about a person. It’s the instructions for the body’s entire genetic makeup. DNA is unique to each individual person. A person has the same DNA throughout his entire body, and it’s located in every cell. Cells are the basic building blocks of all people.
This DNA discovery began to develop as early as 1943 when Oswald Avery proved that DNA can carry genetic information (PBS, 2001). Many other scientists soon began to believe that DNA must have had a simple structure to store genetic information for making living organisms. By 1950, Crick and Watson were on a mission to figure out how DNA worked. The two together, combined their scientific backgrounds for 18 months and were able to establish that DNA had a complex structure, but was intriguingly simple enough to be the molecule of life (National Library of Medicine, 2015). During the same time in London, Franklin and Wilkins were also studying DNA, but by
In the year of 1896, a scientist named Friedrich Meiser discovered DNA. However, the actual role and structure of DNA was still under question until Erwin Chargaff proved that adenine, thymine, guanine, and cytosine are not equally present in DNA