Timeline of Genetic Engineering

This is a timeline of genetic engineering and genetics in general. It outlines the most significant events and discoveries that led to the genetic revolution.

2500 B.C.: Oral records describe the selective breeding of horses.

350 B.C.: Aristotle proposes that the genetic material is carried by the sperm, the female fluid organizes it.

A.D.:

1721: Boylston uses inoculation to prevent smallpox.

1766: Van Leeuwenhoek observes human sperm under the microscope and sees “tiny
Humans”.

1796: Edward Jenner provides evidence for the effectiveness of inoculation to prevent diseases.

1831: Charles Darwin begins his around-the-world expedition on the Beagle.

1858: Charles Darwin publishes On the Origin of Species. In it, he explains how natural selection of genetic variations leads to the evolution of new species.

1866: Gregor Mendel reports his experiments on pea plants, showing the patterns of genetic inheritance.

1868: Friedrich Miescher isolates DNA.

1895: Albrecht Kossel gives the initial descriptions of DNA’s chemical structure. He finds that DNA is a long chain of nucleotides: A, T, G and C.

1903: Chromosomes are identified in dividing cells as the probable carriers of genetic material.

1910: Peyton Rous discovers that a type of cancer in chickens is transmitted from one animal to another (he is awarded the Nobel Prize in 1966).

1928: Frederick Griffith’s experiment indicates a chemical structure of genes.

1934: Asbjorn Folling calls phenylketonuria a “genetic disease”.

1935: High-yielding wheat is developed in Japan by genetic selection and crosses.

1944: Oswald Avery shows that DNA causes genetic transformation in bacteria, pointing to DNA as the genetic material.

1950: Ernst Wynder finds a linkage between smoking and lung cancer in careful population studies.

1952: Alfred Hershey and Martha Chase demonstrate that DNA is the genetic material in cells.

1953: James Watson and Francis Crick propose the double-helix structure of DNA.

1956: Arthur Kornberg describes DNA polymerase, the enzyme that catalyzes DNA replication.

1958: A carrot is cloned from a single specialized (mature) cell.

1960: An unusual chromosome called the Philadelphia chromosome is found to be diagnostic in chronic myelogenous leukemia. Forty years later, a drug is developed specifically for the gene product from this chromosome.

1961: High-yielding adaptable wheat is developed by Norman Borlaug in Mexico. The use of this variety of wheat results in record crops in Mexico and India.

1962: A frog is cloned by nuclear transplantation from a specialized cell nucleus. Werner
Arber describes bacteriophage restriction and proposes specific restriction enzymes made by bacteria that cleave incoming phage DNA at specific sequences. Newborn screening for the genetic disease phenylketonuria begins. Its public health success results in other screening programs.

1964: Robert Holley determines the first sequence of a nucleic acid.

1970: Norman Borlaug is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for breeding high-yielding varieties of wheat for use in the poor regions of the world.

1971: Daniel Nathans maps a viral genome using a restriction enzyme. The model for cancer involving tumor suppressor genes is proposed. This leads to the discovery of these genes and their control of cell division.

1973: Genes from different bacteria are spliced together in the lab and then put into a single cell. Soon, human genes are put into bacteria and expressed.

1977: DNA sequencing methods are developed and soon automated. This ultimately leads to genome sequencing projects.

1979: The human insulin gene is expressed in bacteria. This is first drug made using genetic engineering, and a new industry is born. Smallpox is eradicated through vaccination.

1982: A genetically modified bacterium is patented; upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court, this leads to many more patents of organisms and genes.

1984: The Human Genome Project is first proposed.

1985: DNA fingerprinting by repeated sequences is invented by Alec Jeffreys. It soon has many applications in forensics.

1989: Bacteria with genes for digesting oil are used in bioremediation of the oil spill from the tanker Exxon Valdez.

1990: The novel Jurassic Park brings DNA technology to public attention. A transgenic cow makes a human protein in its milk.

1995: The first genome of an organism is sequenced: a bacterium that causes meningitis.

1996: Dolly the sheep, the first cloned mammal, is born. Other mammals are soon cloned.

1998: Human embryonic stem cells are grown in the laboratory, making possible their use in medicine.

1999: Golden rice, rich in betacarotene, is made by genetic modification of rice plants. Debate continues on the possible dangers of genetically modified crops.

2000: Drafts of the entire human genome sequence are completed (the final sequence is announced in 2003).

2001: Salt-tolerant tomato plants are made by genetic modification, opening up the possibility of genetically adapting crops to the environment.

2002: Stem cells are isolated from fat.

2005: The chimp genome is completed, leading to comparisons with the human genome to find differences.