Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) - Solving the structure
Solving the structure
The 1950s were a big decade for DNA. While many researchers were working to prove exactly what DNA did, other scientists were racing to figure out how DNA was structured. In 1953 molecular biologists James D. Watson (1928–) and Francis Crick (1916–) solved the puzzle of DNA's double-helix molecular structure. Their discovery is recognized as one of the most important scientific findings of the twentieth century.
Prior to Watson and Crick's discovery, researchers knew that DNA was made up of units called nucleotidesThe basic unit of a nucleic acid. It consists of a simple sugar, a phosphate group, and a nitrogen-containing base. (Pronounced noo-KLEE-uh-tide.). There are four types of nucleotides found in DNA, differing only in their nitrogen-containing basesSubstance that when...
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