Wed 4 Oct 2006
Roger Kornberg, professor of structural biology at Stanford University, US, has been awarded the 2006 Nobel prize in chemistry for his work on the molecular basis of transcription.
That makes it a bumper year for Stanford, where both Kornberg and RNAi pioneer, now fellow laureate, Andrew Fire are based. It also makes an impressive crop of gongs for the Kornberg family – Roger Kornberg’s father, Arthur, won the 1959 Nobel prize in physiology or medicine for his work on the biological synthesis of RNA and DNA.
October 5th, 2006 at 8:40 am
yeah~ this year is really a RNA year, and again, another chemistry nobel prize awarded through biological research…
October 5th, 2006 at 10:32 am
I do wonder whether chemists ever resent the fact that so many of ‘their’ nobel prizes are awarded to what many would class as biology? or is it just further proof that chemistry is fundamental to our understanding of the nitty-gritty of biology?
October 6th, 2006 at 5:11 pm
I think this just highlights the fact that the lines between traditionally separate fields of study are in fact blurring.