Evelyn M. Witkin (born Evelyn Maisel; March 9, 1921) is an American
geneticist
A geneticist is a biologist or physician who studies genetics, the science of genes, heredity, and variation of organisms. A geneticist can be employed as a scientist or a lecturer. Geneticists may perform general research on genetic processes ...
who was awarded the
National Medal of Science
The National Medal of Science is an honor bestowed by the President of the United States to individuals in science and engineering who have made important contributions to the advancement of knowledge in the fields of behavioral and social scienc ...
for her work on DNA
mutagenesis
Mutagenesis () is a process by which the genetic information of an organism is changed by the production of a mutation. It may occur spontaneously in nature, or as a result of exposure to mutagens. It can also be achieved experimentally using lab ...
and
DNA repair
DNA repair is a collection of processes by which a cell identifies and corrects damage to the DNA molecules that encode its genome. In human cells, both normal metabolic activities and environmental factors such as radiation can cause DNA da ...
.
Research
In 1944, Witkin spent the summer at
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) is a private, non-profit institution with research programs focusing on cancer, neuroscience, plant biology, genomics, and quantitative biology.
It is one of 68 institutions supported by the Cancer Centers ...
(CSHL). During her stay she isolated a
UV radiation
Ultraviolet (UV) is a form of electromagnetic radiation with wavelength from 10 nm (with a corresponding frequency around 30 PHz) to 400 nm (750 THz), shorter than that of visible light, but longer than X-rays. UV radiation i ...
-resistant mutant of ''E. coli''; this was the first time mutations conferring UV radiation-resistance were isolated.
She returned to CSHL in 1945 and stayed there to complete her PhD research; her degree was conferred in 1947 and was employed by the Carnegie Institution to continue work at CSHL until 1955. Witkin then worked at the State University of New York's Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn until 1971. Witkin was appointed Professor of Biological Sciences at Douglass College,
Rutgers University
Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was ...
in 1971 and was named
Barbara McClintock Professor of Genetics in 1979, and then moved to the Waksman Institute at Rutgers in 1983.
Witkin's research since the completion of her PhD was based on DNA mutagenesis, her mutagenesis work led to her work on DNA repair. By characterizing the phenotypes of mutagenised ''E. coli'', she and colleague
Miroslav Radman (at the time a post doctoral student at Harvard) detailed the
SOS response
The SOS response is a global response to DNA damage in which the cell cycle is arrested and DNA repair and mutagenesis is induced. The system involves the RecA protein (Rad51 in eukaryotes). The RecA protein, stimulated by single-stranded DNA ...
to UV radiation in bacteria in the early 1970s. She continued to work on the mechanism of the SOS response until she retired in 1991.
The SOS response to DNA damage was a seminal discovery because it was the first coordinated stress response to be elucidated.
Honors
![Evelyn M](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7d/Evelyn_M._Witkin.jpg)
Witkin was elected as a member of the
National Academy of Sciences in 1977, at the time she was one of the few women elected to the Academy; a Fellow of the
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, a ...
(1978),
a Fellow of the
American Association for the Advancement of Science (1980); and a Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology. She was awarded the 2000
Thomas Hunt Morgan Medal
The Thomas Hunt Morgan Medal is awarded by the Genetics Society of America (GSA) for lifetime contributions to the field of genetics.
The medal is named after Thomas Hunt Morgan, the 1933 Nobel Prize winner, who received this award for his work wi ...
and her contributions to science have been recognized by the United States government as she was awarded the
National Medal of Science
The National Medal of Science is an honor bestowed by the President of the United States to individuals in science and engineering who have made important contributions to the advancement of knowledge in the fields of behavioral and social scienc ...
in 2002;
For her insightful and pioneering investigations on the genetics of DNA mutagenesis and DNA repair that have increased our understanding of processes as varied as evolution and the development of cancer.
In 2015, she was awarded The
Wiley Prize
The Wiley Prize in Biomedical Sciences is intended to recognize breakthrough research in pure or applied life science research that is distinguished by its excellence, originality and impact on our understanding of biological systems and processes. ...
in Biomedical Sciences.
Witkin won the 2015
Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research, with
Stephen J. Elledge, "for discoveries concerning the DNA-damage response - a fundamental mechanism that protects the genomes of all living organisms."
Also in 2015, she was named as one of ''
The Forward
''The Forward'' ( yi, פֿאָרווערטס, Forverts), formerly known as ''The Jewish Daily Forward'', is an American news media organization for a Jewish American audience. Founded in 1897 as a Yiddish-language daily socialist newspaper, ...
'' 50.
Personal life
Evelyn Witkin was married to psychologist
Herman Witkin; their children include Joseph Witkin, an emergency physician and founding member of
Sha Na Na
Sha Na Na was an American rock and roll doo-wop group. Formed in 1969, but performing a song-and-dance repertoire based on 1950s hit songs, it simultaneously revived and parodied the music and the New York street culture of the 1950s. After ga ...
, and
Andrew Witkin (d. 2010), a computer scientist. She is also the grandmother of four. She
turned 100 in 2021.
[ ]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Witkin, Evelyn M.
1921 births
Living people
American geneticists
American centenarians
Women centenarians
Rutgers University faculty
Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science
Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences
National Medal of Science laureates
Columbia University alumni
Recipients of the Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research