About Mary-Dell Chilton
Mary-Dell Chilton (February 2, 1939 – June 24, 2026) was an American biochemist, inventor and writer who was one of the founders of modern plant biotechnology. She performed research at Washington University in St. Louis and was a Distinguished Science Fellow at Syngenta Biotechnology, Inc. Chilton was notable for her discovery of the presence of Agrobacterium Ti plasmid DNA fragments in the nuclear DNA of crown gall tissue in 1977. During her career, she was awarded the World Food Prize (2013) and the National Medal of Technology and Innovation by President Joe Biden in 2023. She was also inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame. Chilton was the first (1977) to demonstrate the presence of a fragment of Agrobacterium Ti plasmid DNA in the nuclear DNA of crown gall tissue. The National Medal of Technology and Innovation was awarded to Chilton by President Biden in 2023.
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