Barbara McClintock

Maize cytogeneticist who discovered transposable elements, earning the 1983 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

Core Principles & Analysis

• Discovered mobile genetic elements, or 'jumping genes', in maize chromosomes in the 1940s.
• With Harriet Creighton, demonstrated in 1931 that genetic recombination occurs by chromosomal crossover.
• Won an unshared Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1983 for transposition.

Specifications & Metrics

• ERA: 1902-1992