DNA is such a fascinating and complex topic. As important as DNA is, I find it interesting that its know-abouts have only been around since the late 19th century; however, since that time there certainly has been an increasing amount of discoveries since Johann Friedrich Miescher identified the unknown substance of what would later be known as, deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA).
Since DNA’s discovery science has been able to manipulate DNA in order to help people figure out their filial relationships, identify a deceased unknown person, track predisposed conditions for health prevention and probably the most popular, to determine a parent child relationships through DNA paternity testing.
Do you have questions about DNA testing?
Imagine a time when DNA was completely unknown to our world and now it’s contributing to such above named advanced testing.
Here is timeline of DNA Milestones:
- 1869 Johann Friedrich Miescher identifies an acidic substance in the nucleiu of human white blood cells. What was this? DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid).
- 1912 The beginning stages of DNA’s structure are identified by a father and son physicists.
- 1928 British medical officer, Franklin Griffith discovers the role that heat plays in DNA transformation. This lead to the discovery that genetic material is a heat-stable chemical.
- 1944 The transformation discovery by Griffith is identified by his colleagues as DNA. Their discovery, however lead to many skeptics of this “too simple” of a molecule.
- 1949 Biochemist, Erwin Chargaff’s research proves that DNA is specific to species.
- 1953 James Watson and Francis Crick discover DNA structure.
- 1962 Crick, Watson and Wilkins receive the Nobel Prize for determining the structure of DNA, only after nearly one hundred years and much skepticism.
