"The structure of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) was discovered in 1953 by two molecular biologists, James Dewey Watson (1928-2025) and Francis Harry Compton Crick (1916-2004). Watson and Crick were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1962 for their pioneering work. This is the accepted version of history. However, Rosalind Franklin (1920-1958), an English chemist whose expertise in X-ray crystallography made a significant contribution, may have paved the way for Watson and Crick."
"Yet Franklin has never been given due recognition for her painstaking work in producing DNA images and data that Watson and Crick used to build their model of DNA's structure. Rosalind Franklin's story involves intellectual property theft, sexism, and deceit, and the struggle of a woman scientist to be accepted in the male-dominated scientific community of the 1950s. Recent scholarship suggests Franklin should be credited as an equal co-discoverer of DNA's structure."
"Deoxyribonucleic acid, or DNA, is a set of genetic instructions inside cells that is unique to every individual and determines how we look and how our bodies function. DNA passes along hereditary traits from generation to generation. Unlocking DNA's secrets would help scientists understand genetic susceptibility to specific disorders & contribute to drug development & gene therapy. DNA was known to scientists before the 1950s. In 1869, the Swiss physician, Johann Friedrich Miescher (1844-1895), was the first to identify the molecule now known as DNA."
Watson and Crick discovered the structure of DNA in 1953 and received the 1962 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. Rosalind Franklin produced critical X-ray crystallography images and data that contributed to their model but received limited recognition. Her experience reflects alleged intellectual property theft, sexism, deceit, and the struggle of a woman scientist in the 1950s male-dominated scientific community. Recent scholarship proposes Franklin as an equal co-discoverer, hinging on how 'scientific discovery' is defined. DNA contains genetic instructions unique to individuals, transmits hereditary traits, and underlies research into genetic susceptibility, drug development, and gene therapy.
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