James F. Bonner

James F. Bonner
Born(1910-09-01)September 1, 1910
DiedSeptember 13, 1996(1996-09-13) (aged 86)
EducationUniversity of Utah (BA)
California Institute of Technology (PhD)
Known forDevising a better way to collect natural rubber from trees; discovering histones control gene activity
Scientific career
FieldsMolecular biology
InstitutionsCalifornia Institute of Technology
Notable studentsRu Chih C. Huang

James Frederick Bonner (September 1, 1910 – September 13, 1996) was an American molecular biologist, a member of the National Academy of Sciences, notable for discoveries in plant biochemistry. Bonner invented a better way to collect natural rubber from trees. As result of his invention Malaysia nearly doubled its production of natural rubber. Bonner was instrumental in the invention of a method of mechanical harvesting of oranges. One of his most notable discoveries was finding how histones control gene activity. Bonner was professor and professor emeritus of biology at the California Institute of Technology.