molecular biology

American  

noun

1. the branch of biology that deals with the nature of biological phenomena at the molecular level through the study of DNA and RNA, proteins, and other macromolecules involved in genetic information and cell function, characteristically making use of advanced tools and techniques of separation, manipulation, imaging, and analysis.

---

molecular biology British  

noun

1. the study of biological phenomena at the molecular level

---

molecular biology Scientific  

/ mə-lĕk′yə-lər /

1. The branch of biology that deals with the formation, structure, and function of macromolecules essential to life, such as nucleic acids and proteins, including their roles in cell replication and the transmission of genetic information.

---

molecular biology Cultural  

1. The branch of science devoted to studies of the structure, function, and reactions of DNA, RNA, proteins, and other molecules involved in the life processes.

---

Etymology

Origin of molecular biology

First recorded in 1935–40

Example Sentences

I went to college to study molecular biology because I needed to understand what had happened to me.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026

He was credited for providing technical support to molecular biology research at the University of Minnesota.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 25, 2026

At a time when applying molecular biology to psychiatric questions was still considered bold, Dr. Nestler and colleague Dr. Ron Duman recognized that the field was ready for a new scientific direction.

From Science Daily • Dec. 13, 2025

It saw E. coli go on to play a central role in many more discoveries and milestones in genetics and molecular biology.

From BBC • Sep. 25, 2025

But in the 1980s and 1990s a gush of new information about the first Americans came in from archaeological digs, anthropological laboratories, molecular biology research units, and linguists’ computer models.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann