Women who shaped macromolecular NMR: four decades of innovation in structure, dynamics, membrane proteins, RNA, chromatin, and cellular biophysics

Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is a uniquely powerful biophysical technique that enables the characterization of biomolecular structure, dynamics, and interactions at atomic resolution under conditions that closely approximate the native cellular environment. Its impact on modern molecular biology and biophysics is difficult to overstate, as it has provided fundamental insights into the molecular principles that govern biological function. In this review, I highlight the remarkable contributions of women scientists to the development and application of macromolecular NMR. Although these contributions have been instrumental in advancing the field, they have often received less recognition than they deserve. By tracing the evolution of biomolecular NMR over the past four decades, I aim to showcase the pioneering work of women researchers whose innovations have shaped many of the major areas of modern macromolecular NMR. The review begins with the foundational advances that established contemporary biomolecular NMR in the 1980s and 1990s, progresses through methodological developments that expanded our understanding of molecular dynamics and intrinsically disordered systems, and concludes with landmark applications that transformed our understanding of diverse biological processes and systems. Importantly, this review is not intended to provide a comprehensive historical account of all women who have contributed to the field or to discuss all their accomplishments. Rather, it reflects a very personal perspective on a selection of particularly influential and inspiring scientists whose work has had a profound impact on macromolecular NMR and its applications to biological research.