Paul Berg

1926-

American biochemist who developed the technique of splicing DNA from different organisms and recombining it in a separate hybrid.

Recombinant DNA technology became a fundamental advance in genetic research, giving scientists a valuable tool for studying chromosomes and genetic diseases. In 1985 Berg became the director of the Beckman Center for Molecular and Genetic Medicine. He received the 1980 Nobel Prize for chemistry, shared with Walter Gilbert and Frederick Sanger, for his recombinant DNA research.