Hans Spemann
Walter Sutton
Oswald Avery
Francis Crick
James Watson
Paul Berg
Stanley Cohen
Herbert Boyer
Kary B. Mullis
Steen Willadsen
Ian Wilmut
Keith Campbell
Richard Seed

Molecular biologist who in 1972 created the first recombinant DNA molecules, and, in doing so, created the field of genetic engineering.

Berg, born in Brooklyn, New York, attended Case Western Reserve University, and in 1952, obtained a Ph. D. in biochemistry. He became a Stanford professor in 1959.

Berg, in 1972, combined DNA from the cancer-causing monkey virus SV40 with that of the virus lambda to create the first recombinant DNA molecules. However, upon realizing the dangers of his experiment, terminated it before it could be taken any further. He immediately, in what is now called the "Berg Letter," proposed a one year moratorium on recombinant DNA research, in order for safety concerns to be worked out. Berg later continued his recombinant DNA research, and was awarded the 1980 Nobel Prize in chemistry.

In 1991, Berg accepted a position as the head of the Scientific Advisory Committee of the Human Genome Project.

Timeline: 1972

Web Link:
Biography of Paul Berg

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