Francis Crick

English physicist and biologist

Born: June 8, 1916  ·  Died: July 28, 2004

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Francis Crick
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Who was Francis Crick?

Francis Harry Compton Crick (8 June 1916 – 28 July 2004) was an English molecular biologist, biophysicist, and neuroscientist. He, James Watson, Rosalind Franklin, and Maurice Wilkins played crucial roles in deciphering the helical structure of the DNA molecule. Crick and Watson's paper in Nature in 1953 laid the groundwork for understanding DNA structure and functions. Crick was an important theoretical molecular biologist and played a crucial role in research related to revealing the helical structure of DNA. In other words, the final step in the flow of information from nucleic acids to proteins is irreversible. During the remainder of his career, Crick held the post of J.W.

Crick and Watson DNA model built in 1953 was reconstructed largely from its original pieces in 1973 and donated to the National Science Museum in London.
Crick and Watson DNA model built in 1953 was reconstructed largely from its original pieces in 1973 and donated to the National Science Museum in London.
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Historical significance

Together with Maurice Wilkins, they were jointly awarded the 1962 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine "for their discoveries concerning the molecular structure of nucleic acids and its significance for information transfer in living material". He is widely known for the use of the term "central dogma" to summarise the idea that once information is transferred from nucleic acids (DNA or RNA) to proteins, it cannot flow back to nucleic acids.

Stained glass window in the dining hall of Caius College, in Cambridge, commemorating Francis Crick and representing the double helical structure of B-DNA
Stained glass window in the dining hall of Caius College, in Cambridge, commemorating Francis Crick and representing the double helical structure of B-DNA
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APA

Francis Crick. (n.d.). thisDay. Retrieved October 26, 2026, from https://thisday.info/people/francis-crick/

Chicago

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