Nature’s issue number containing Watson and Crick’s first DNA paper was 4356. The paper, “A Structure for Deoxyribose Nucleic Acid,” appeared on 25 April 1953 in volume 171, pages 737–738.
Watson and Crick proposed that DNA consists of two complementary strands arranged in a double helix. Their model explained how paired bases could provide a mechanism for copying genetic information, making the paper a landmark in molecular biology.
Issue 4356 also contained closely related DNA research by Rosalind Franklin and Raymond Gosling, and by Maurice Wilkins, Alexander Stokes, and Herbert Wilson. These papers supplied important X-ray diffraction evidence supporting the helical structure.
A common mix-up is confusing the issue number, 4356, with the journal volume, 171, or with the publication date, 25 April 1953. The issue number is the four-digit number requested here.