One day in 1953, James Watson and Francis Crick claimed they had “found the secret of life” in the Eagle Pub. They had just discovered the secret behind deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). These two, however, were not the first ones to learn about DNA. In 1943, Oswald Avery proved that DNA carried genetic information, but people at that time could not elaborate that idea any further.
About DNA
Wilkins (Left), Exposure 51 (Middle), Franklin (Right), King's College London Archives
Crick was a British graduate student, and Watson, an American research fellow, decided they should work together to find the secret behind DNA. They were both attending Cambridge University. At King’s College, Rosalind Franklin and Maurice Wilkins were also studying DNA. They used X-ray diffraction as their main tester. Beaming X-rays through a molecule created a shadow picture of the molecule's structure, depending on how the X-rays bounced off its component parts.
Franklin, a shy young woman, was suffering patronizing attitudes and sexism, making her do most of the work alone. Her senior partner, Wilkins, revealed some of Franklin's discoveries to Watson in 1953 without her knowing. The X-ray image, known as "Exposure 51," amazed James Watson. He reportedly said, "The instant I saw the picture, my mouth fell open and my pulse began to race." Shortly afterwards, Watson and Crick made a massive advancement in their research.
Original drawing of the structure of DNA by Crick, 1953, Design is fine. History is mine.
They proposed that DNA was made up of two chains of nucleotides paired to form a double helix. This structure, announced the article in the 1953 issue of Nature, explained how DNA replicated itself during cell division, enabling organisms to reproduce themselves with a surprising amount of accuracy. For the discovery, Wilkins, Watson, and Crick received the 1962 Nobel Prize.
Even with her massive scientific contribution, Franklin was not one of the award winners for the discovery of DNA’s helical structure. She died of cancer four years previous to the award ceremony, at 37 years old.