Wendy Bickmore

BIOGRAPHY

ACADEMIC POSITION:
Professor, MRC Human Genetics Unit

EDUCATION AND CAREER:
• 1979-1983 Biochemistry degree (BA Hons) Oxford
• 1983-1986 PhD in Molecular Biology, MRC Mammalian Genome Unit, University of Edinburgh
• 1986-1991 Postdoctoral scientist with Prof Nick Hastie at the MRC Clinical and Population Cytogenetics Unit
• 1991-1996 Fellow of Lister Institute of Preventive Medicine
• 1996-present Senior Scientist within the Chromosomes and Gene Expression section of the MRC Human Genetics Unit, Edinburgh

AWARDS:
• 1997 Balfour lecturer Genetical Society of Great Britain
• 1999 James S McDonnell Centennial Fellowship in Human Genetics
• 2001 Charles Darwin lecturer British Association for the Advancement of Science
• 2001 Elected as member of EMBO
• 2004 Appointed Honorary Professor, School of Molecular and Clinical Medicine, University of Edinburgh
• 2005 Awarded Tenovus medal
• 2005 Elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh
• 2005 Elected as a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences

EDITORIAL BOARDS:
• Chromosome Research.
• Human Molecular Genetics
• EMBO Journal

RESEARCH INTERESTS:
We aim to understand the spatial organisation of the genome inside of our cells and how this affects genome function. The human genome is not a linear string of letters but a dynamic and three dimensional complex of DNA with proteins and RNA. We are looking – aided by the light microscope and fluorescent coloured tags – at the spatial organisation of our genome inside of cells. The questions that we are asking are: Where are different human chromosomes located in the cell nucleus? Where are genes located when they are active or inactive? Can DNA sequences move around in the nucleus? What proteins organise the nucleus and the genome?

HOME PAGE
http://www.hgu.mrc.ac.uk/Users/Wendy.Bickmore/Home.html