Robert Brainard Corey (August 19, 1897 – April 23, 1971) was an American biochemist, mostly known for his role in discovery of the
α-helix
The alpha helix (α-helix) is a common motif in the secondary structure of proteins and is a right hand-helix conformation in which every backbone N−H group hydrogen bonds to the backbone C=O group of the amino acid located four residues e ...
and the
β-sheet
The beta sheet, (β-sheet) (also β-pleated sheet) is a common motif of the regular protein secondary structure. Beta sheets consist of beta strands (β-strands) connected laterally by at least two or three backbone hydrogen bonds, forming a gen ...
with
Linus Pauling
Linus Carl Pauling (; February 28, 1901August 19, 1994) was an American chemist, biochemist, chemical engineer, peace activist, author, and educator. He published more than 1,200 papers and books, of which about 850 dealt with scientific top ...
. Also working with Pauling was
Herman Branson
Herman Russell Branson (August 14, 1914 – June 7, 1995) was an American physicist, chemist, best known for his research on the alpha helix protein structure, and was also the president of two colleges. He received a fellowship from the Rosenwal ...
. Their discoveries were remarkably correct, with even the bond lengths being accurate until about 40 years later. The α-helix and β-sheet are two structures that are now known to form the backbones of many
protein
Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including catalysing metabolic reactions, DNA replication, respo ...
s.
Academic training
A childhood
polio
Poliomyelitis, commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 70% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe s ...
survivor, Corey received his undergraduate degree from the
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The university is composed of 17 undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges at its urban Pittsburgh campus, home to the universit ...
, and his Ph.D. in chemistry from
Cornell University
Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...
(Marsh, p. 52-53).
The findings of α-helix and β-sheet
At
Caltech
The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech or CIT)The university itself only spells its short form as "Caltech"; the institution considers other spellings such a"Cal Tech" and "CalTech" incorrect. The institute is also occasional ...
, the trio (Pauling, Corey and Branson) published a series of 8 articles in the
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
''Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America'' (often abbreviated ''PNAS'' or ''PNAS USA'') is a peer-reviewed multidisciplinary scientific journal. It is the official journal of the National Academy of Sci ...
(
PNAS
''Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America'' (often abbreviated ''PNAS'' or ''PNAS USA'') is a peer-reviewed multidisciplinary scientific journal. It is the official journal of the National Academy of Scien ...
).
The most revolutionary of the 8 articles in PNAS is the one written on February 28, 1951. That date was also Pauling's 50th birthday. It was called "The Structure of Proteins: Two Hydrogen-Bonded Helical Configurations of the Polypeptide Chain". In the paper, one odd thing is that the trio diagrammed the α-helix as a left-handed helix, although it is really a right-handed one. Another odd thing in the paper is that the 3(10) helix is almost never mentioned, although it is very common, while the γ-helix, which was another focus of the paper, is almost never found in nature.
See also
*
CPK coloring
In chemistry, the CPK coloring (for Corey– Pauling– Koltun) is a popular color convention for distinguishing atoms of different chemical elements in molecular models.
History
August Wilhelm von Hofmann was apparently the first to introd ...
*
Corey-Pauling rules
In biochemistry, the ''Corey-Pauling rules'' are a set of three basic statements that govern the secondary nature of proteins, in particular, the CO-NH peptide link. They were originally proposed by Robert Corey and Linus Pauling
Linus Carl P ...
References
External links
The Protein Papersby Christen Brownlee, in PNAS at 100: Classics of the Scientific Literature, special issue of the
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
''Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America'' (often abbreviated ''PNAS'' or ''PNAS USA'') is a peer-reviewed multidisciplinary scientific journal. It is the official journal of the National Academy of Sci ...
Robert Brainard Coreyby Richard E. Marsh, Biographical Memoirs V.72 (1997) of the
National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nati ...
Key Participants: Robert B. Corey– ''It's in the Blood! A Documentary History of Linus Pauling, Hemoglobin, and Sickle Cell Anemia''; an
– ''Linus Pauling and the Race for DNA: A Documentary History''
National Academy of Sciences Biographical Memoir
1897 births
1971 deaths
20th-century American biochemists
American biophysicists
Cornell University alumni
University of Pittsburgh alumni
{{US-biochemist-stub