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Nobel Prize in Chemistry, awarded to Richard L. Millington Synge for his invention of partition chromatography in 1941, a groundbreaking technique that separates biochemical substances into their fundamental parts, elusive to scientists until that time. Partition chromatography transformed the emerging field of molecular biology in the second half of the 20th century, allowing for the understanding of the DNA double helix in 1953 and the synthetic production of insulin.
With partition chromatography - which allows for substances to separate by passing through a base phase, rather than being absorbed by it, scientists were finally able to learn the quantity of ''ingredients'' in a substance, and equally important, the sequence of ingredients, i.e. know in which order they appear. Like a series of cascading dominoes, this discovery was the catalyst for some of the most important scientific discoveries over the next decade. It allowed chemist Erwin Chargaff to prove ''Chargaff's Rule'' in 1951, the axiom that DNA nucleobases are the building blocks of genetic code, leading, in turn, to Watson and Crick's understanding of how DNA worked when they discovered its double helix structure: that the ''ladder rungs,'' or nucleobase pairs of A-T-C-G were the carriers of genetic code.
In addition to this revolutionary understanding of DNA, partition chromatography also led directly to the treatment of diabetes by allowing Frederick Sanger to sequence the protein structure of insulin (for which he won the Nobel Prize in 1958), allowing for the biosynthetic manufacture of insulin. Before this discovery, diabetic patients had to rely on expensive, unstable and potentially dangerous bovine insulin treatment. More broadly, partition chromatography proved that proteins had a determined structure, allowing scientists to differentiate and sequence the 22 different types of amino acids in genetic code. The method of gas partition chromatography continues to be used today and is essential to pharmaceutical research and development.
With its impact on understanding living creatures, Synge's invention originated in an unlikely place: at the Wool Industries Research Association in Leeds, England in the early 1940s. With his colleague Archer Martin, Synge was tasked with understanding the amino acid structure of wool so as to help the UK textile industry compete with synthetic fiber substitutes. They achieved this, of course, likely not realizing the enormous impact their invention would have upon the incredible scientific discoveries of the latter half of the 20th century. In addition to winning the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Synge was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 1963. He completed his secondary schooling at Winchester College before studying chemistry at Trinity College at the University of Cambridge.
Nobel Prize is made of 23kt gold, consistent with the 1952 medals. Medal features the relief portrait of Alfred Nobel to front, with his name and the years of his birth and death. Reverse features a relief of the Goddess Isis, whose veil is held up by a woman who represents the genius of science. Encircling the medal are the words ''Inventas vitam juvat excoluisse per artes'', translating to ''And they who bettered life on earth by their newly found mastery''. Synge's name and 1952 in Roman numerals are engraved on a plaque below the relief of the two women, with ''Reg. Acad. Scient. Suec.'' also written, an abbreviation for The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Etched upon the medal is the name of Erik Lindberg, who designed the Nobel medal. Medal weighs 196 grams and measures 2.625'' in diameter. Fine condition. Accompanied by red leather Nobel presentation case with Synge's name tooled on lid.
Nobel Prize in Chemistry Awarded to Richard Millington Synge in 1952 -- Synge Invented Partition Chromatography, a Revolutionary Way to Separate Particles that Unlocked the Mysteries of DNA
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