In October 1972, Christian Boehmer Anfinsen (M.S., University of Pennsylvania, 1939) shared the 1972 Nobel Prize for Chemistry ‘for his work on ribonuclease, especially concerning the connection between the amino acid sequence and the biologically active conformation.’

The genetic information of an organism is stored in DNA molecules which, via RNA molecules, are converted during the formation of proteins. Proteins consist of a long chain of amino acids that fold themselves in a special way. The chemical processes inside cells are controlled by a type of protein called enzymes.

Christian Anfinsen studied the enzyme ribonuclease, which divides RNA into smaller components. In 1961, Anfinsen proved that the sequence of amino acids, in itself, determines the way the chain folds itself and that no additional genetic information is required in this process.