# Chapter 3: Meet DNA, the bearer of genetic information

The discovery of the structure of DNA marked a major milestone in molecular biology and genetics. In 1953, James Watson and Francis Crick presented the first spatial model of DNA, explaining many of its unique properties. Nine years later, in 1962, together with Maurice Wilkins, they were awarded the Nobel Prize for this discovery. The experiments of Rosalind Franklin, who made X-ray diffraction images of DNA, also made a significant contribution, but her merits in the discovery of the structure of DNA were initially overlooked and received more attention only after her death. Also useful were the observations of Erwin Chargaff, who noticed that the representation of individual nitrogenous bases in DNA follow certain rules, which led to the discovery of the principle of base pairing. A new era of molecular genetics began from this moment.