Paul Doty was a biochemist and biophysicist who studied the physical properties of proteins and nucleic acids. Harvard's memorial identifies DNA melting and reassociation of separated strands among his scientific contributions. His research helped make DNA structure accessible through measurable physical transitions rather than chemical composition alone.[ref]
With J. Marmur, Doty studied how DNA thermal-denaturation temperature relates to GC content. Their1962 paper followed260nm absorbance through the hyperchromic effect accompanying the transition and compared melting measurements with independently known base compositions.[ref]
An original calculation using the paper's empirical relation illustrates its quantitative purpose. Under the stated solvent condition of about0.2molar sodium ions, the reported fit is
(1)
with expressed numerically in degrees Celsius and the percentage GC content. A measured midpoint of89.8degrees Celsius corresponds to
(2)
This inference depends on the solution conditions and the empirical fit; it is not a universal temperature-to-composition conversion for every DNA sample.[ref]
Figure 1.
Paul Doty at the Belfer Center in2005
. The Harvard Gazette identifies Doty standing beside his founder's photograph. Courtesy of the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs.

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