Jack W. Szostak
= Jack W. Szostak
{c}
\b[Jack W. Szostak] is a molecular biologist whose research connects <chromosome> maintenance, laboratory selection of functional molecules and experimental models of early life. His joint 2009 <Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine> recognized discoveries concerning chromosome protection by <telomeres> and <telomerase>.<The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2009 press release by the Nobel Assembly>[Award citation]{ref} That recognition concerns chromosome ends, a distinct contribution from his work on molecular selection.
With <Richard W. Roberts>, Szostak coauthored the 1997 experiment that covalently attached an encoded <peptide> to its <mRNA>, providing a basis for <mRNA display>. Synthetic messages carried <puromycin> at the 3′ end; <translation (biology)> produced RNA–peptide fusions. The authors demonstrated selective recovery using an <epitope> and <immunoprecipitation>.<RNA-peptide fusions for the in vitro selection of peptides and proteins by Richard W. Roberts and Jack W. Szostak>[Abstract and Introduction; RNA–peptide fusion and selection demonstration]{ref} The experimental question was how to recover the sequence encoding a selected protein after selecting its physical binding behavior.
The connection between <genotype> and <phenotype> is what makes iterative selection possible. As an original bookkeeping example, if an intact linkage survives each of five processing steps with stipulated probability 0.9, independent losses leave $0.9^5\simeq0.590$ of the initially linked molecules. Even a useful covalent design does not by itself guarantee complete recovery through a multistep experiment. Retention of encoding information and the selected molecular function must both be checked.
His university research account also describes work toward copying <RNA> without enzymes and coupling replication to simple membrane-bounded systems in origin-of-life experiments. It distinguishes experimental progress from unresolved problems in repeated replication and chemical compatibility.<Jack W. Szostak research profile by the University of Chicago Department of Chemistry>[The Origins of Life; Nonenzymatic RNA Replication; Model Protocells]{ref} These laboratory models explore possible mechanisms rather than directly observing the historical origin of life.
\Image[https://chemistry.uchicago.edu/sites/default/files/styles/faculty_image/public/2024-12/Jack_Szostak.jpg?itok=_PqE0YNt]
{title=Jack W. Szostak in his University of Chicago faculty portrait}