A day after the news of her death was published, we offer the scientific legacy she left behind: decades of struggle with a problem that was considered almost insoluble, the development of crystallographic methods, the deciphering of the ribosome, and laying the foundation for understanding the action of antibiotics and bacterial resistance.
A day after the news of Prof.'s death was published Ada YonathThe Weizmann Institute's background materials allow us to focus less on the prize itself and more on the scientific path that led to it—and especially on what remains of it for biological and medical research.
A problem that was considered almost impossible
In the late 70s, Yonat chose to try to determine the atomic structure of theribosome, a vast and flexible complex of RNA and proteins. At the time, the very idea of creating ordered crystals of such a system seemed impractical to many researchers. Yonath persisted and established a long-term research program that lasted for many years.
The work required not only perseverance but also the development of methods. Yonat was one of the pioneers of cryo-bioCrystallography — Rapid freezing of biological crystals to reduce damage caused by X-rays during measurement. The technique later became a key tool inStructural biology.
From atomic structure to antibiotic action
The deciphering of the three-dimensional structure of the subunits of the bacterial ribosome in the early 2000s made it possible to see where and how antibiotic drugs bind. This turned decades of basic research into a tool for understanding the mechanism of action of drugs and studying bacterial resistance.
Yonat herself has repeatedly emphasized over the years that theantibiotics It is a developing problem. The newspaper website covered her remarks as early as the early 2000s, and later also her warnings about the economic difficulty in developing new antibiotics.
Basic research that continues to generate new questions
For Yonath, the ribosome was not just a target for structural decipherment. In later years, her group also addressed questions about the origin of life and the possibility that the core of the modern ribosome preserves a remnant of an ancient, simpler system for creating bonds between amino acids.
This is perhaps the central point of her scientific legacy: solving a big question did not close a field of research, but opened a new set of questions—from the design of antibiotics to the origins of the protein production mechanism itself.
Questions and Answers
What was Ada Yonat's main breakthrough?
Yonat was one of the researchers who led the deciphering of the structure and function of the ribosome at the atomic level, an achievement for which she shared the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for the year 2009.
What is the relationship between the ribosome and antibiotics?
Many antibiotics work by binding to the bacterial ribosome and disrupting protein production. The structures that have been deciphered have made it possible to understand the binding mechanism and the basis for some of the resistance mechanisms.
What is cryo-biocrystallography?
This is a method in which biological crystals are rapidly cooled to low temperatures, in part to reduce damage from X-rays during data collection.
Why is this a follow-up article and not the news of yesterday's mourning?
The previous article dealt with Yonath's death and incorporated the interviews and meetings over the years. The current article focuses on the scientific enterprise itself and its ongoing impact.
More on the subject on the science website
- Prof. Ada Yonath, Nobel Prize laureate in Chemistry, passes away at age 87
- The ongoing war between antibiotics and bacteria — an interview with Ada Yonat
- The Ribosome: The Key to Life at the Atomic Level Part 3 — Ada Yonat, the Tenacious Pioneer
- Ada Yonat from the Weizmann Institute won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry
- Only three women won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry until Ada Yonat won
