Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Odile Crick Dies at 86

Wife of Francis Crick first sketched the double helix structure of DNA

By NewsDude , Newser Staff

Posted Jul 23, 2007 4:25 AM CDT

(Newser) – Odile Crick, who made the first published sketch of double-helix structure of DNA, died July 5th in La Jolla, CA, at age 86. She was the wife of Francis Crick, who together with James Watson discovered the structure of DNA. Odile Crick's drawing first appeared with her husband's article in the April, 1953, issue of Nature.

Odile Crick was a potter and painter and was famously underwhelmed when her husband came back from the pub one day claiming he had discovered the secret of all life. The Cricks' home in London, known as the Golden Helix, was legendary for its bohemian parties. Francis Crick and Watson won the Nobel prize for their work on DNA's structure.

[Images (2)]

[Videos (1)]

Odile Crick's Sketch of the Double Helix Structure of DNA (Nature)

DNA Double Helix Turns Fifty (Getty Images)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

James Watson: The double helix and today's DNA mysteries (TEDtalksDirector (YouTube))

View larger videos >>

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next »

To report an error on this story, notify our editors.

More Newser Stories

DNA Pioneeer Kornberg Dies

Biochemist won in '59 for research; son received prize in 2006

(NEWSER) - Nobel laureate Dr. Arthur Kornberg, 89, a pioneering biochemist in the fields of DNA and human genetics, has died of respiratory failure, the New York Times reports. Kornberg shared the award in 1959 for his research into how DNA works, and that research is the foundation for many of today's cancer drugs, notes the San Francisco Chronicle. More»

Map of Cell's Machinery Wins Chemistry Nobel

Trio of laureates includes first woman to win prize in 45 years

(NEWSER) - The Nobel Prize in chemistry was awarded today to three scientists who mapped the structure of the ribosome, the part of the cell that reads DNA and uses its information to create proteins. All three chemists constructed three-dimensional models of the ribosome, using X-ray crystallography to chart hundreds of thousands of atoms. Modern antibiotics work by binding to the ribosomes of bacteria, making them unable to survive. More»

3 US Genetics Researchers Win Medicine Nobel

Work in replication of chromosomes may aid cancer treatment

(NEWSER) - Three American scientists won the Nobel Prize for Medicine today for their work on the replication of chromosomes, which has implications for cancer, aging, and stem cell research. The laureates focused on a string of DNA at the end of chromosomes, called telomeres, and discovered an enzyme that allows dividing cells to copy the entire length of genetic material without degradation. Several clinical trials are investigating whether eliminating this enzyme might be useful in cancer treatment. More»

10 Volunteers Go Public With Their DNA

Database will divulge what really makes a Harvard man, and other genetic secrets

(NEWSER) - Ten volunteers, including some rather well known ones, are exposing themselves online, the New York Times reports, by making their DNA available for anyone to peruse. The goal of the Personal Genome Project is to start making genetic information—along with personal traits called phenotypes—publicly available, a move whose scientific usefulness is huge and whose social implications are unclear. That's why the first group consists of only experts or investors in the field. More»

Thomas Weller, Who Won Nobel for Polio Work, Dead at 93

Work paved way for Salk, Sabin vaccines

(NEWSER) - Thomas Weller, whose research on polio won him a share of a Nobel Prize in 1954, died this weekend at 93, the Boston Globe reports. Weller, along with colleagues John Enders and Frederick Robbins, discovered that the polio virus preyed on muscles, not nerve tissue as had been previously thought. Their cultures paved the way for the Salk and Sabin vaccines. More»

NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS

What is Newser?

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser, we choose the most thought-provoking and entertaining stories from hundreds of US and international sources and reduce them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »

Partnering with: Slate

View Newser on the mobile website

Odile Crick Dies at 86