Graduate Programs in the Life Sciences

Research Focus

The focus of my research is to understand the underlying mechanisms that regulate the integrity of genome duplication. This effort has lead my lab to many aspects of DNA metabolism related to DNA replication. For example, in collaboration with the Schimenti lab, we have shown that a mouse mutation that causes breast cancer is due to the involvement of a replication protein in the repair/checkpoint pathway. In another project, we find that DNA replication proteins are coopted to play an important role in transcriptional silencing. In collaboration with Dr. Keich from the computer science department, we are investigating the evolution of replication origins through comparative genome studies of the different species of yeasts. Our hope is to connect the cellular activities of DNA replication, transcription, repair and cell cycle regulation via the activities of a set of DNA replication proteins.

Educational Background

• A.B., Wellesley College, 1969
• M.S., University of California, San Francisco, 1971
• Ph.D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1974.