James Watson, Nobel prize-winning DNA pioneer, dead at 97

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New York: James Watson — the Nobel laureate co-credited with discovering DNA’s double-helix structure, whose later years were marred by racist remarks — has died at the age of 97.

The eminent American biologist passed away on Thursday in hospice care on Long Island, New York, the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory announced. Watson had been associated with the institution for much of his career.

Watson is remembered as one of the 20th century’s most influential scientists for his 1953 discovery of the DNA double helix, a breakthrough achieved with his research partner Francis Crick.

Together with Crick and Maurice Wilkins, Watson shared the 1962 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their pioneering work that laid the foundation of modern molecular biology.

Their discovery unlocked understanding of the genetic code and protein synthesis, paving the way for revolutionary advances in medicine, forensics, and genetics — including DNA testing and genetically modified crops.

Watson was only 25 when he helped uncover one of science’s greatest secrets. He later conducted pioneering research in cancer and played a key role in mapping the human genome.

His 1968 memoir “The Double Helix” became a bestseller, widely praised for its candid and engaging account of scientific rivalry and discovery.

However, Watson was also known for his abrasive personality and controversial views. He often disparaged female scientists, notably Rosalind Franklin, whose X-ray diffraction images of DNA were instrumental in revealing the molecule’s structure.

Franklin, who worked alongside Wilkins at King’s College London, died in 1958 and did not share in the Nobel Prize — which is awarded to no more than three individuals and never posthumously.

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Watson’s reputation began to unravel in 2007 after he told a British newspaper he was “inherently gloomy about the prospect of Africa” because “all our social policies are based on the fact that their intelligence is the same as ours — whereas all the testing says not really.”

He later apologized, but was swiftly removed as chancellor of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. His public standing never recovered.

‘Twisting ladder’

Born on April 6, 1928, in Chicago, Illinois, James Dewey Watson entered the University of Chicago at age 15 on a scholarship. He earned a Ph.D. in zoology from Indiana University Bloomington in 1950 before pursuing academic work in Europe, including at the University of Cambridge, where he met Crick and began their historic collaboration.

Using X-ray images produced by Franklin and Wilkins, Watson and Crick developed a model of the DNA molecule. Their first attempt failed, but a key image of Franklin’s — obtained without her knowledge — led to their successful identification of the molecule’s double-helical structure, resembling a twisting ladder.

Their model also revealed how DNA replicates itself, answering one of biology’s most fundamental questions. The pair published their findings in the journal Nature in 1953 to worldwide acclaim.

Watson taught at Harvard University for 15 years before becoming director of what is now known as the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, which he transformed into a leading center for molecular biology research.

From 1988 to 1992, he served as one of the directors of the Human Genome Project at the US National Institutes of Health, overseeing efforts to map human genes.

Watson is survived by his wife, Elizabeth, and their two sons, Rufus and Duncan.

Over his lifetime, he received dozens of honorary degrees, authored several books, and earned numerous awards. Actor Jeff Goldblum portrayed him in a BBC film about the discovery of the double helix.

On Friday, the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory paid tribute to his “extraordinary contributions” to science, though it had long severed ties with him — including stripping him of emeritus status — after he made further “reprehensible” comments in a 2019 PBS documentary.