When Florence Bell, a 25-year-old scientist, spoke at a conference held in Leeds, England, in 1939 she made headlines. But it wasn’t her science that made headlines. What was striking at the time was a woman pursuing science. No one knew that her research would be historic, albeit silent. Today we celebrate the dark lady of DNA: Florence Bell. Now, in a new light.
Looking at DNA
She laid the groundwork. And it would be one of the most important milestones in 20th century science. We are talking about the discovery of the structure of DNA.
Bell’s doctoral thesis contained an important chapter. It described how X-rays could reveal a regular and ordered structure of a certain biological fiber. Which one? That of what was then called “thymonucleic acid.”
Today, thymonucleic acid is known by the more familiar name of deoxyribonucleic acid, or DNA.
Bell’s X-ray method would become a vital tool. It would reveal the familiar double helix shape of DNA that allows it to copy genetic information.
Bell, a student at Cambridge, worked with Lawrence and William Bragg. They had received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1915. They showed that X-rays revealed the arrangement of atoms and molecules in single crystals. He then became assistant to physicist William Astbury, who was applying Bragg’s methods to the study of wool. He proved that its structure was like a molecular chain, or necklace. It could be stretched or compacted. That is where Bell came in.
Laying the foundations
She and Astbury proposed an early model of the structure of DNA. Later, that model would give James Watson and Francis Crick a vital foothold. They continued their work on DNA on it.
The work of the dark lady of DNA came to a sudden halt. She entered military service in the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force. During her service she took the first steps in radar development (radio detection and ranging). After marrying an American serviceman, Bell emigrated to the United States. She worked as an industrial chemist before giving up her career to care for her four children.
Her influence was great. Her study of DNA paved the way for Rosalind Franklin. Her work was a key contribution to solving the structure of genetic material. Perhaps it is time to remember Florence Bell one of the many female stories lost in the path of science.
