Dr. Hargobind Khurana: Pioneering the Genetic Code
Although Dr. Hargovind Khurana is originally an Indian scientist, but in 1960 he settled in America and after some time he obtained citizenship there. He was born in January 1922 in Multan city of undivided India (now in Pakistan). His father was a patwari in a nearby village named Raipur. His primary education took place in this village and he passed class X from Multan Government School. He was interested in further studies, so he was admitted to the Government College, Lahore. He passed M.Sc. in Chemistry from there. Due to getting good marks in chemistry, he got scholarship and he went to England for further research work in chemistry.
Went to Switzerland in 1948 and after marrying a girl there came back to England. He came to Canada in 1952, and after serving as the chair of the Department of Biochemistry at Columbia University, moved to the United States in 1960 and has lived there ever since. First became a professor at the Enzyme Research Institute in Wisconsin, and in 1970 he became a professor in chemistry and biology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Meanwhile, he had taken American citizenship.
Initially he did more research and investigation in physiology. Two years after taking American citizenship, Dr. Khorana received the Nobel Prize in 1968 along with two other American scientists for his important inventions in medical science.
Dr. Khurana’s discovery is artificial gene. The main function of genes is to control the action or activity of each cell of our body and to increase the body. That is, some part separates from one cell and takes the form of another cell. Another function of the cell is the synthesis of proteins in the body. But both these functions are done on the basis of the outline of the genes. The gene resides in the interior of the cell. That is, the physical cells which are so subtle, you probably cannot guess how subtle the genes inside them would be. You will be surprised to know that all the genes in all the cells of our body can be packed in a box of half a square inch and if If these are resolved and joined together, then their length will be such that this string will reach from the earth to the sun and from there to the earth again.
These genes are the main basis of a person’s nature, qualities, shape-type. As we get genes from our parents, our qualities, deeds, nature become according to them. You must have heard many doctors asking their patients whether your parents or any ancestors had this disease? This clearly means that some diseases come from family tradition. Dr. Hargovind Khurana studied many of these things and finally he succeeded in making artificial genes.
The artificial gene created by Dr. Khurana will make it possible that there will be no fear of hereditary diseases. When this becomes possible, then it is also possible that the appearance and color of man can also be changed and it may also be possible that scientists will be able to create humans with the same nature and virtues as they want. If such a situation can be created, then it is possible that dictators of Hitlerian attitude may call a scientist like Dr. Khurana and ask them to raise a fighting army. If this experiment of Khurana can be able to remove human weaknesses, sufferings and diseases coming from family traditions, then it will be a great service to mankind. With the discovery of Dr. Khurana, it is possible to imagine the bright future of human beings. Dr. Khurana has been appreciated by scientists all over the world for his inventions. This has proved once again that Indian scientists can be counted among the greatest scientists of the world.