Final answer:
Kary B. Mullis invented the PCR technique, for which he received a Nobel Prize in 1993. PCR is widely used in genetics, forensics, and diagnostics, involving primers and Taq polymerase to amplify DNA.
Step-by-step explanation:
The scientist who created the Nobel-prize winning polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is Kary B. Mullis. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1993 for this significant invention. PCR has become a foundational technique in molecular biology, allowing researchers to amplify a small segment of DNA into millions of copies in just a few hours. It has wide-ranging applications, including gene studies, medical diagnostics, and forensic science. Kary Mullis's contribution to biotechnology has reshaped the way genetic research and testing are performed, enabling precise examinations of DNA sequences even from the most limited and degraded samples.
PCR uses short sequences of DNA, known as primers, to initiate replication, and the enzyme Taq polymerase, derived from Thermus aquaticus, to synthesize new DNA strands. This process involves repeated cycles of heating and cooling, which denature the DNA double helix, allow primer annealing, and then enable new strand extension by Taq polymerase. Kary Mullis's development of this method highlights the ingenuity and transformative impact of modern biochemical techniques.