Carl Woese
1928–2012 · USA · Redrew the tree of life.
Contribution
In 1977, used 16S ribosomal RNA phylogenetics to discover Archaea as a third domain of life alongside Bacteria and Eukarya — replacing a simpler prokaryote/eukaryote split.
Why It Still Matters
16S (and related marker genes) still power microbial identification, microbiome surveys, and phylogenetic diagnostics. Taxonomy became molecular.
Key Links
- Hub: Medical Microbiology History
- Methods: PCR (amplifies rRNA genes in practice) · molecular phylogenetics
- Domains: MOC - Bacteriology · MOC - Diagnostic & Lab Methods
- MOC: MOC - Fundamentals of Microbiology
Active Recall
- What molecule did Woese use for phylogeny?
- What third domain did he propose?