🧬 DNA Discovery Day: The Spiral That Changed the World

On April 25, 1953, James Watson and Francis Crick published in the journal Nature the double helix model of DNA — the key to understanding heredity. They used X-ray images by Rosalind Franklin and Maurice Wilkins, which showed a clear "X-shaped" structure.

We wish to suggest a structure for the salt of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). This structure has novel features which are of considerable biological interest. A structure for nucleic acid has already been proposed by Pauling and Corey. They kindly made their manuscript available to us in advance of publication. Their model consists of three intertwined chains, with the phosphates near the fibre axis, and the bases on the outside. In our opinion, this structure is unsatisfactory for two reasons: (1) We believe that the material giving the X-ray diagrams is the salt, not the free acid. Without the acidic hydrogen atoms it is not clear what forces would hold the structure together, especially as the negatively charged phosphates near the axis will repel each other. (2) Some of the van der Waals distances appear to be too small.

I like this style of presentation — clear and to the point, describing their discovery and convincingly refuting the opinion of the already Nobel laureate Pauling.

This elegant model explained how DNA replicates: the two strands of the helix separate, each serving as a template for a new one. The 1962 Nobel Prize (Watson, Crick, Wilkins) marked a revolution in biology, genetics, and medicine.

Happy DNA Day to all!