Personal reflections on the origins and emergence of recombinant DNA technology

Abstract

The emergence of recombinant DNA technology occurred via the appropriation of known tools and procedures in novel ways that had broad applications for analyzing and modifying gene structure and organization of complex genomes. Although revolutionary in their impact, the tools and procedures per se were not revolutionary. Rather, the novel ways in which they were applied was what transformed biology. Copyright © 2010 by the Genetics Society of America.