The Nature of Viruses, Cancer, Genes, and 

 Life — A Declaration of Dependence 1 



By Wendell M. Stanley 



Professor of Biochemistry and Director of the Virus Laboratory 

 University of California 



Each of the four topics mentioned in the title of this lecture is sub- 

 stantial enough to warrant having an entire lecture devoted to it 

 alone. Actually a proper and full discussion of viruses, of cancer, 

 of genes, or of life would require many hours. It may, therefore, 

 appear quite presumptuous to have included all four in the title of 

 a single lecture. But let me hasten to indicate that I do not pro- 

 pose to attempt to develop these topics as such, but that I do propose 

 to sketch in certain basic information and then to devote most of my 

 time to a discussion of new relationships between these four subjects, 

 relationships which I believe to be of the utmost importance. 



Recent scientific discoveries, especially in the virus field, are throw- 

 ing new light on the basic nature of viruses and on the possible nature 

 of cancer, genes, and even life itself. These discoveries are providing 

 evidence for relationships between these four subjects which indicate 

 that one may be dependent upon another to an extent not fully ap- 

 preciated heretofore, and hence the time is appropriate for a declara- 

 tion of the nature of the dependence that may be involved. Too often 

 one works and thinks within too narrow a range and hence fails to 

 recognize the significance of certain facts for other areas. Some- 

 times the important new ideas and subsequent fundamental discover- 

 ies come from the borderline areas between two well-established fields 

 of investigation. I trust, therefore, that this declaration of depend- 

 ence will result in the synthesis of new ideas regarding viruses, can- 

 cer, genes, and life, and that these ideas in turn will result in the 

 doing of new experiments which may provide the basis for funda- 

 mental discoveries in these fields which are so important to every one 

 of us. 



1 Penrose Memorial Lecture, April 25, 1957. Reprinted by permission from 

 Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, vol. 101, No. 4, August 1957. 



357 



