25 April is National DNA Day and is celebrated annually.
National DNA Day was first celebrated on 25 April 2003 in the United States after being proclaimed by the Senate and the House of Representatives as a one-time celebration. After 2003, the National Human Genome Research Institute continued to organise annual celebrations. Since this time, various groups have also declared 25 April International DNA Day and World DNA Day. To read more, click here.
This day was created to commemorate the day in 1953 when James Watson, Francis Crick, Maurice Wilkins, Rosalind Franklin and colleagues published papers in the science journal Nature, announcing their discovery of the structure of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA).
It was also on the same day in 2003 that the Human Genome Project – which had as its goal to map the nucleotides contained in human DNA – was declared complete.
To celebrate this day students, teachers and the public are encouraged to learn more about genetics and genomics. Share your ideas about National DNA Day on social media using #NationalDNADay.
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