NIKOLAI KONSTANTINOVICH KOL’TSOV, THE AUTHOR OF THE TEMPLATE-DIRECTED SYNTHESIS CONCEPT AND FOUNDER OF EXPERIMENTAL BIOLOGY IN RUSSIA

• Main Authors: N. N. Yurchenko, O. V. Trapezov, I. K. Zakharov
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Institute of Cytology and Genetics of Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences 2014-12-01
• Series: Vavilovskij Žurnal Genetiki i Selekcii
• Subjects: n.k. kol’tsov; comparative anatomy of vertebrates; cytoskeleton; physicochemical methods in biology; experimental sex determination; parthenogenesis; chemical and radiation mutagenesis; eugenics
• Online Access: https://vavilov.elpub.ru/jour/article/view/48

Nikolai K. Kol’tsov (1872–1940) went on his scientific way from comparative anatomy of vertebrates to experimental cytology and then to genetics and molecular biology. He discovered the cytoskeleton. He foresaw that the successful development in biology would require a union with physics, chemistry, and mathematics. He demonstrated that strong physical and chemical factors could produce mutations in organisms. He also put forward the concept of template-directed synthesis of biopolymers. Professor Kol’tsov established a prominent school of experimental biologists, who succeeded in studies of special genetics of animals and plants, artificial mutagenesis, population genetics, and other fields. For four decades Koltsov was working on one major problem, cell organization. His studies were in line with trends in global biology. He participated in the creation and development of new experimental approaches in cytology, biochemistry, developmental mechanics, and genetics.