A Sticky Situation: Recombinant DNA Technology Janet Mertz’s work with simian virus 40 DNA during her graduate years was pivotal for developing DNA recombination as we now know it.

Within roughly five years, the pair succeeded in combining Cohen’s plasmids and Boyer’s enzymes to create recombinant DNA technology, genetically engineering bacteria that could produce a foreign ...

Genetic engineering uses enzymes to carefully alter genetic material. This line of study has led to hardier and healthier food crops, the mass production of insulin, and novel vaccines, and it’s all ...

The famed 1975 conference about a controversial genetic technology is feted as an example of how scientific self-regulation works. But more significant is what wasn’t discussed.