James Watson, the American molecular biologist who co-discovered the double-helix structure of DNA, has died at age 97. He died in hospice care on Long Island, New York, following a brief illness, according to his former research institution, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory.
Scientific Contributions
In 1953, Watson, along with Francis Crick and Maurice Wilkins, determined the double-helix structure of DNA. This discovery was considered a pivotal moment in the life sciences, providing the foundation for modern genetic engineering, disease treatment, and DNA identification techniques. For this work, the three men were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1962. Their breakthrough relied heavily on X-ray diffraction data produced by chemist Rosalind Franklin and her colleague Maurice Wilkins.