WILLIAM H. MCCLAIN

McClain is known for the dissection of RNA-protein recognition primarily through genetic studies in bacteria. The work is meticulous, self-critical and has led to new ideas... Work on multimeric precursor tRNA processing to tRNA in the 1970s remains a paradigm of RNA synthesis. He defined a seven-step pathway leading from transcribed DNA to large RNA intermediates that accumulated in successions of mutant cells lacking germane processing enzymes and whose nucleotide sequences defined the ordered steps, including formation of tRNAs' 3'-CCA OH end for amino acid acceptance. Other precursor tRNA processing work continued.

Primary location: Madison United States