Discovery of the double-helix structure of DNA
- Date
- 25 April 1953
- Category
- Science, technology & invention
- Region
- Western Europe (United Kingdom)
- Era
- Contemporary
- Significance
On 25 April 1953 the journal Nature published a trio of papers describing the molecular structure of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA).
James Watson and Francis Crick, working at the Cavendish Laboratory in Cambridge, proposed the double-helix model in which two complementary strands of nucleotides are wound around each other, with base pairing that immediately suggested how genetic information is stored and copied. Their model relied crucially on X-ray diffraction data produced by Rosalind Franklin and Maurice Wilkins at King's College London, whose own papers appeared alongside. The double helix explained how genes could be faithfully replicated and provided the structural basis for molecular biology, the genetic code, and later genetic engineering, genomics and biotechnology. Watson, Crick and Wilkins received the 1962 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine; Franklin, who died in 1958, was not eligible, and the extent and acknowledgement of her contribution has been the subject of substantial later debate. The discovery is widely regarded as a foundational moment in the life sciences.
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Empires active in 25 April 1953
- Soviet Union1922 CE – 1991 CE
- French Colonial Empire (Second)1830 CE – 1962 CE
- British Empire1583 CE – 1997 CE
- Spanish Empire1492 CE – 1976 CE
- Portuguese Empire1415 CE – 1999 CE
- Solomonic dynasty1270 CE – 1974 CE
Related science, technology & invention events
- Launch of Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite4 October 1957
- Invention of the integrated circuit1958–1959
- Invention of the transistor at Bell LabsDecember 1947
- Green Revolution Transforms South Asian Agriculturec. 1966 (peak adoption mid-1960s onward)
- Apollo 11 Moon landing20 July 1969 (mission 16–24 July 1969)
- Intel Releases the 4004, the First Commercial Microprocessor1971
Also relevant
Further reading
The wider story
A Little History of Science
Warm, jargon-free tour of discovery from Babylonian stargazers to the genome.
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