8-Mar-2024

Womenʼs History Month and Rosalind Franklinʼs Double Helix

Rosalind Franklin in Paris © CSHL, CC BY-SA 4.0

March is Women's History Month, a time to celebrate the achievements of women throughout history. Science trailblazer Rosalind Franklinʼs work on elucidating the DNA double helix paved the way for modern molecular biology, with applications to medical and forensic science.

In the early 1950ʼs, at Kingʼs College in London, biophysicist Franklin used X-ray diffraction to produce high-resolution images of DNA molecules. Her famous "Photo 51" gave critical evidence for DNAʼs helical structure. Her data and analysis were instrumental in guiding James Watson and Francis Crick to later build their Nobel Prize winning double helix model.

Today, Cybergenetics pioneering TrueAllele® computer technology resolves laboratory data to give critical evidence for DNA identification. Before TrueAllele, crime labs couldnʼt properly interpret complex DNA mixtures. The labs discarded vital evidence as “inconclusive,” or reported inaccurate DNA match statistics. Cybergeneticsʼ forensic DNA inventions help scientists reveal essential truth for better justice.