He completed his PhD studies in Zoology at Indiana University in 1950. His dissertation was a study of the effect of hard X-rays on bacteriophage multiplication. His thesis advisor was S E Luria, an Italian-born microbiologist who would later help him obtain a job where Watson would change the world's perception of biology.
In 1950-51, Watson worked in Copenhagen as a Merck Fellow of the National Research Council, studying bacterial viruses and the effect on DNA of infected virus particles. In May of 1951, he met Maurice Wilkins at a symposium and saw the X-ray diffraction pattern of crystalline DNA. Fascinated, his interest turned to the structural chemistry of nucleic acids and proteins. In October, 1952, Dr. Luria helped him secure a position as a Fellow in the Cavendish Laboratory at the University of Cambridge, England, where he continued his research. It was at Cavendish that Dr. Watson met Francis Crick who was also interested in learning the structure of the DNA molecule.
On February 28, 1953, Watson and Crick announced they had deciphered the structure of the DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) molecule, which they described as a double helix, or "gently twisted ladder." They theorized that the individual strands of the helix disconnect much the way a zipper works, and then each separate strand reproduces the missing strand. A molecule of DNA thus creates two exact duplicates of itself. Their discovery was published in Nature, April 25, 1953. This scientific leap opened many new doors in biology and genetics research and helped lead to the later discovery of recombinant DNA techniques.
Starting in 1953, Watson was a Senior Research Fellow in Biology at the California Institute of Technology, working with Alexander Rich in X-ray diffraction studies of RNA. On 1955, Watson returned to Cavendish and teamed up again with Crick.
In 1956, Watson joined the faculty of Harvard, becoming a Professor in 1961. His primary research interest was the role of RNA in protein synthesis.
Dr. Watson received the Nobel Prize in 1962, for Physiology and Medicine, with Francis Crick and Maurice Wilkins.
In addition to his teaching and research work at Harvard, from 1968 until 1993, Watson served as a Director of the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in New York. His high energy and outspoken personality helped to lead the institute to sound financial footing and gain recognition as a world leader in genetic research. Scientists working at Coldwater first discovered the molecular nature
