Cyrus Levinthal (May 2, 1922 – November 4, 1990) was an American

molecular biologist Molecular biology is the branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecular basis of biological activity in and between cells, including biomolecular synthesis, modification, mechanisms, and interactions. The study of chemical and physi ...

Biography

Levinthal graduated with a Ph.D. in physics from

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

and taught physics at the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

for seven years before moving to the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern t ...

(MIT) in 1957. In 1968 he joined

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manha ...

as the Chairman and from 1969 Professor of the newly established Department of Biological Sciences, where he remained until his death from

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from transformed, malign ...

in 1990.

Research

While at MIT Levinthal made significant discoveries in molecular genetics relating to the mechanisms of

DNA replication In molecular biology, DNA replication is the biological process of producing two identical replicas of DNA from one original DNA molecule. DNA replication occurs in all living organisms acting as the most essential part for biological inherita ...

, the relationship between

gene In biology, the word gene (from , ; "... Wilhelm Johannsen coined the word gene to describe the Mendelian units of heredity..." meaning ''generation'' or ''birth'' or ''gender'') can have several different meanings. The Mendelian gene is a b ...

s and

protein Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including catalysing metabolic reactions, DNA replication, respon ...

s, and the nature of messenger RNA. At Columbia Levinthal applied computers to the 3-dimensional imaging of biological structures such as proteins. He is considered the father of computer graphical display of protein structure.

Discoveries and accomplishments

See Levinthal's paradox.

External links

Cyrus Levinthal
on

website
Early Interactive Molecular Graphics at MIT
1922 births 1990 deaths American molecular biologists American geneticists University of California, Berkeley alumni University of Michigan faculty Computational chemists Massachusetts Institute of Technology faculty Columbia University faculty Members of the National Academy of Medicine {{US-biologist-stub