HARGOBIND KHORANA
1.How Hargobind Khorana scaled heights in life?
Hargobind Khorana was born in a Hindu family in a little village called Raipur in Punjab in British India. The village is now part of West Pakistan. He is the youngest of a family consisting of one daughter and four sons. His father was a ‘patwari’. ‘patwari’ was a village agricultural taxation clerk in the British Indian system of government. Although poor, his father was determined to educate his children and they were actually the only literate family in their village inhabited by about 100 people.
Hargobind Khorana went to the D.A.V. High School in Multan. Ratan Lal, who was one of his teachers, influenced him greatly during that period. Later, Hargobind studied at the Punjab University in Lahore where he obtained a M.Sc. degree. Here Mr. Mahan Singh influenced him greatly.
Khorana lived in India until 1945, when the award of a Government of Indian Fellowship threw an opportunity and made it possible for him to go to England. In England, he studied for a Ph.D degree at the University of Liverpool. Roger J.S. Beer not only supervised him but looked after him affectionately. Later Khorana spent a year 1948-49 at the Eidgenossische Technische Hochschule in Zurich with Professor Vladimir Prelog for doing postdoctoral work. This association with Professor Prelog further moulded immensely his thought and philosophy towards science, work and effort. Later on Khorana obtained fellowship with Dr.G. W.Kenner and Professor A.R.Todd. He stayed in Cambridge from 1950 till 1952. He began research on nucleic acids during this fellowship at the University of Cambridge under Sir Alexander Todd. His interest in both proteins and nucleic acids got strengthened at that time. After that Hargobind went to Vancouver after Dr.Gordon M.Shrum of British Columbia offered him a job in 1952. The British Columbia Research Council gave a great amount of freedom to do whatever researcher liked to do. Dr. Shrum’s inspiration, encouragement and frequent help, scientific counsel from Dr. Jack Campbell, a group began to work in the field of biologically interesting phosphate esters and nucleic acids. Among the many devoted and loyal colleagues of this period, there was one Dr. Gordon M.Tener, who contributed positively to the spiritual and intellectual make up of the group.
Hargobind later held fellowships and professorships in Switzerland at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology and the Universities of British Columbia and Wisconsin. In 1960 Khorana joined the Institute of Enzyme Research at the University of Wisonsin. In 1960 Khorana corroborated Nirenberg findings that the way the four different types of nucleotides are arranged on the spiral “staircase” of the DNA molecule determines the chemical composition and function of a new cell.
2. Give an account of Hargobind Khorana’s academic education?
Hargobind Khorana is from poor family. He is the youngest of a family consisting of one daughter and four sons. His father was a ‘patwari’. ‘patwari’ was a village agricultural taxation clerk in the British Indian system of government. Although poor, his father was determined to educate his children. Hargobind Khorana went to the D.A.V. High School in Multan. Ratan Lal, who was one of his teachers, influenced him greatly during that period. Later, Hargobind studied at the Punjab University in Lahore where he obtained a M.Sc. degree. Here Mr. Mahan Singh influenced him greatly.
Khorana lived in India until 1945, when the award of a Government of Indian Fellowship threw an opportunity and made it possible for him to go to England. In England, he studied for a Ph.D degree at the University of Liverpool. Roger J.S. Beer not only supervised him but looked after him affectionately. He got fellowship from Cambridge Univeristy and stayed untill 1950 till 1952.
Hargobind later held fellowships and professorships in Switzerland at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology and the Universities of British Columbia and Wisconsin.
3. Who did Khorana share the 1968 Nobel Prize in Physiology/Medicine with and with what was their work concerned?
Khorana shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine in 1968 with Marshall W. Nirenberg and Robert W. Holley for research that helped to show how the genetic components of the cell nucleus control the synthesis of proteins. In other words the research helped to show how the nucleotides in nucleic acids, which carry the genetic code of the cell, control the cell’s synthesis of proteins. Thus the three scientists received the 1968 Nobel Prize for their interpretation of the genetic code and its function in protein synthesis. Khorana’s role was to design the methods that led to the synthesis of well defined nucleic acids, ultimately leading to the solution of the genetic code. Dr. Khorana and his team had established that the mother of all codes, the biological language common to all living organisms, is spelled out in three-letter words: each set of three nucleotides codes for a specific amino acid, in their Nobel lecture delivered on December 12, 1968.
4. What were the Khorana’s achievements in during the 1970’s?
Dr.Khorana made a contribution to genetics in 1970, when he and his research team were able to synthesize the first artificial copy of the yeast gene. Later, in 1971 Khorana joined the faculty of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology as Alfred P.Sloan Professor of Biology and Chemistry. He also subsequently became a naturalized citizen of the United States.
In 1976 Khorana led the team that first synthesized a biologically active gene. His work provides much of the basis for gene therapy and biotechnology. Dr Khorana was also the pioneering scientist to synthesize oligonucleotides, that is, strings of nucleotides. These customized pieces of artificial genes are widely used in biology labs for sequencing, cloning and engineering new plants and animals. Dr. khorana’s invention of oligonucleotides has become indispensable tools in biotechnology. In response oto this demand, Dr. Khorana’s invention has become mechanized and commercialized to such an extent that no one can fax a genetic sequence of choice to one of many mail order companies, and synthetic gene is shipped in return mail.
Hargobin Khorana is seen as a biologist with a vision. This recipient of Nobel Prize for Medicine and Physiology, who along with Marshall Nirenberg and Robert Holley cracked the genetic code, is a person with an extraordinary sense of perseverance and uncommon vision. He is unique among scientists of this golden period. Khorana’s later research areas include Strudture-Functionin Rhodopsin and Protein-Protein Interactions in Amplification and Adaptation among other topics. Khorana is one of those scientists who do not rest on past glory and achievements. He currently lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States serving as MIT’s Alfred P.Sloan Professor of Biology and Chemistry, Emeritus.
5. What kind of a role did Khorana’s wife Esther Elizabeth Sibler play in his career.
Dr. Khorana got married in 1952 to Esther Elizabeth Sibler, who is of Swiss origin. Esther greatly strengthened Khorana’s sense of purpose. This is especially true in his life during the time when, after six years; absence from country of his birth, Khorana felt out of place everywhere and at home nowhere.
6. Write a short note on Hargobind Khorana as a biologist with a vision.
From the beginning Khorana was interested in biological studies and nucleic acids. He did research o nucleic acids during his fellowship at the University of Cambridge under Sir Alexander Todd. His interest in both proteins and nucleic acids. At the British Columbia Research Council he worked in the field of biologically interesting phosphate esters and nucleic acids. In 1960 he joined the Institute for Enzyme Research at the University of Wisconsin. He supported the findings of Nirenberg on cell biology. Khorana did extensive work on amino acids and nucleotide code. He did research with Nirenberg and Holley on the interpretation of the genetic code and its function in protein synthesis in 1970
Some points to remember
1. Khorana was born in a little village Raipur, part of West Pakistan, in British India.
2. Khorana’s date of birth is unknown but official documents show it as 9th Jan, 1922.
3. Khorana’s fathes was a Patwari, avillage agricultural taxation clerk.
4. Khorana completed his schooling in D.A.V.High Schol, Multan (now in Pakistan).
5. Ratan Lal was one of his inspiring teachers who influenced him greatly during his schooling.
6. Khorana obtained his M.Sc. from Panjab University.
7. Mr. Mahan Singh was Khorana’s great teacher, accurate experimentalist, and his supervisor in Panjab University.
8. Khorana studied his Ph.D from the University of Liverpool, England.
9. ROGER J. S. Beer was Khorana’s supervisor in his Ph.D.
10. Khorana spent a year at the Eidgenossische Technische Hochschule in Zurich with Professor Vladmir Prelog for doing postdoctoral work.
11. Khorana stayed in Cambridge from 1950 till 1952.
12. He started his research on nucleic acids during the fellowship at the university.
13. Khorana was offered a job by Dr.Gordon M. Shrum of British Columbia in 1952.
14. Hargobind later held fellowships and professorships in Switzerland at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology and the Universities of British Columbia and Wisconsin.
15. Khorana joined the Institute for Enzyme Research at the University of Wisconsin In 1960.
16. Khorana corroborated Nirenberg’s findings in 1960’s.
17. Khorana shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine in 1968.
18. Khorana shared the Nobel Prize with Marshall W. Nirenberg and Robert W. Holley.
19. The three scientists received the Nobel prize in 1968 for their interpretation of the genetic code and its function in protein synthesis.
20. They delivered their Nobel lecture on Dec, 12, 1968.
21. Khorana made his contribution to genetics in 1970.
22. Hargobind Khorana got married in 1952 to Esther Elizabeth Sibler who is of Swiss origin.
23. Khorana and his team developed the first artificial copy of a yeast gene.
24. Khorana joined as the faculty of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, United States as Alfred P. Sloan Professor of Biology and chemistry, Emeritus in 1971.
25. In 1976 Khorana led the team first synthesized a biologically active gene.
26. Dr. Khorana’s invention of oligo nucleotides has become indispensable tools in biotechnology.
27. Khorana showed that some of the codons prompt the cell to start or stop the manufacture of proteins.
28. Khorana currently lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States as Alfred P. Sloan Professor of Biology and chemistry, Emeritus.
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