Biochemistry is the study of the chemical composition of the living matter and the

biochemical processes that govern life activities throughout growth and

maintenance[1]. It comes from the words bio meaning life and chemistry, thus
the chemistry of life. Unlike other fields, it focuses on the processes that occur at
molecular level by studying how the structure of a molecule relates to its function.
As a result, it allows the prediction on how molecules will act[2]. Here is the history
of biochemistry in a chronological order from its inception until the present day.

Biochemistry is important in the development of a wide range of scientific

disciplines which include microbiology, cell and molecular biology, botany, genetics,
forensics, and medicine[1]. The emergence of Biochemistry as a discipline is
arguable and still remains unclear, even at present. However, most scientists
believe that it started out from the ancient Greek who dwelled on the structure,
composition, and different processes that occur within living organisms[3].
History of Biochemistry
Biochemistry History - A Timeline
DURING THE 17TH CENTURY
1665
Micrographia bookRobert Hooke had successfully invented the microscope.
Because of this discovery, Robert Hooke was the first one to have a close look of a
cell appears to be. His description of these cells was published in Micrographia.
However, the cell walls observed by Hooke gave no indication of the nucleus and
other organelles found in most living cells.
1674

Anton van Leeuwenhoek witnessed a live cell (plant) under a microscope.

DURING THE 18TH CENTURY

1775 Antoine Lavoisier first proposed a mechanism for photosynthesis, a process
wherein plants plants take in carbon dioxide and release oxygen. Lavoisier was also
the first to investigate cell respiration in animals[4].
1777-83 Chemistry became dominated by the phlogiston theory, or the
hypothetical principle of fire wherein all the combustible material was part
composed. In this principle, burning (oxidation) was caused by liberating phlogiston,
with ash as the dephlogistigated substance [4].

This period was also dominated by the traditional method of organic analysis by
destructive distillation. This however did not provide any information about
composition.

Both in theory and techniques, chemistry was wholly inadequate to unravel the
mysteries of the important functions in living systems.
This period marked the onset of physiological chemistry, a sub-field of chemistry
that dealt more with extra cellular chemistry, such as the chemistry of digestion and
of body fluids[1].
DURING THE 19TH CENTURY
1836 The proponent of the cell theory in Biology, Theodore Schwann, proposed
that the process of fermentation is solely limited to living yeast cells in 1836. Liebig
did not agree to this and instead, he proposed another alternative theory of
fermentation.
1856 Louis Pasteur opposed Liebigs chemical theory. In his experiment, he
showed that fermentation depends highly on the physiological functions that occur
in bacteria and in living yeast cells. This work of Pasteur in 1856 received general
recognition [4].
1860s The view on the chemistry of life highly different from the chemistry of
nonliving things. During this period, the view is that the gelatinous and homogenous
form of matter in organisms or more commonly known as the protoplasm carries out
all the intracellular processes. These include respiration, biosynthesis of molecules,
and the breakdown of matter [5].
1869 Friedrich Miescher first identified what he called nuclein inside the nuclei
of human white blood cells[4].

TWENTIETH CENTURY UP TO THE PRESENT

1900s One of the most important events that happened during this period is the
experiment done by Eduard Buchner. He prepared a cell-free extract of yeast which
he called the zymase. It fermented glucose and produced carbon dioxide and
ethanol. In this way, Buchner then had introduced the concept of an enzyme. This
discovery of Buchner had debunked the previous theory of protoplasm
[5].Furthermore, the distinction between catalysis by hydrolytic extracellular
enzymes and by intracellular enzymes disappeared.
1904 The term Biochemistry was officially coined by the German chemist Carl
Neuber.
1919 Phoebus Levene, a Russian physician and chemist, first discovered the order
of the three major components of a single nucleotide (phosphate, pentose sugar,
and nitrogenous base). He was also the first to discover the carbohydrate

component of RNA (ribose), and carbohydrate component of DNA (deoxyribose).

Years later, Levene finally identified how DNA and RNA molecules are put together
[4]
1937 Hans Krebs discovered the process of the Citric Acid Cycle (also known as
Krebs cycle, in honor to him), which a series of chemical reactions that occur during
cell respiration. Here, glucose and oxygen get converted to water, carbon dioxide
and energy.The advancement in the field of molecular biology, a field of biology that
focuses on the physiological organization of living organisms in molecular level, is
indeed a great help in the progress of biochemistry. Somehow, it is quite difficult to
distinguish between molecular biology and biochemistry since both of them are
concerned with the intermolecular and intercellular transformations[3]. It was then
theorized that proteins were composed of linear chains of amino acids. This
however happened even prior to the identification of the amino acid constituents of
amino acids.
1944 While working on bacterial samples, Oswald Avery first suggested in 1944
that the genetic material of the cell was possibly the deoxyribonucleic acid.
1950 A scientist named Erwin Chargaff began to challenge Levenes previous
conclusions. He noted that the nucleotide composition of DNA differs among species
and do not repeat in the same order reached two major conclusions [6].Chargaff
concluded that almost all DNA, no matter what organism or tissue type it comes
from, still maintains certain properties, even as its composition varies. He
postulated the Chargaffs Rule which says that the amount of cytosine is equal to
the amount of guanine, and the amount of thymine is equal to the amount of
adenine. In short, the total amount of pyrimidines (thymine and cytosine)
approximates the amount of purines (adenine and guanine).Utilizing all discoveries
prior to the, James Watson and Francis Crick were able to derive the threedimensional and double helical model of the DNA in 1953[6]. After that, the process
of replicating the DNA was suggested.
1958 The theory was only confirmed after Frederick Sanger discovered the first
and complete protein structure in 1958. The protein that was first identified is
insulin.
1961 After the discovery of the genetic material, the next achieved milestone was
the cracking of the genetic code. It was discovered in 1961 that the genetic code is
made up of specific triplets of DNA bases that encodes for particular amino acids.
1977 Sixteen years after the discovery of the triplets of the DNA, Fred Sanger had
successfully sequenced the genome of a bacteriophage which contained more than
5000 nucleotides. Not long after, he was able to sequence the DNA of the human
mitochondrial genome which consisted of more than 16 000 nucleotides [4]In the
present time, Biochemistry has promises to the world of science in development of
new path-breaking research and coming times would surely prove these promises to

be fulfilled.The development of new technology such as X-ray diffraction,

chromatography, radioisotopic labelling, electron microscopy and molecular
dynamics had paved the way for many other discoveries in the field of
Biochemistry. Such technologies will also further open other new endeavors in the
future.

Read More http://www.bioexplorer.net/history_of_biology/biochemistry/