EMBO Molecular Medicine—Where molecular biology meets clinical research

In 1964, when the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) was founded, molecular biology was a small, emerging field within the biological sciences. The founders of EMBO, among them Max Perutz, John Kendrew, Francois Jacob and Eduard Kellenberger. . ., to name just a few, belonged to the avantgarde of molecular biology. They came from different backgrounds—physics, chemistry, medicine and biology, but they shared interest in two basic questions: (i) What are the molecular mechanisms that govern heredity and (ii) how does genetic information become functional via the three‐dimensional structure of proteins. Needless to say, these basic questions were answered in principle by the mid‐1960s; thanks to the brilliant achievements of a rather small number of outstanding researchers.Today, molecular biology provides the conceptual framework for practically all aspects of life sciences. Its impact on medical sciences is without precedent, considering the powerful diagnostics at our disposal, our present‐day insights into pathological states and the medical treatments built on such insights.» The impact of molecular biology on medical sciences is …