Constance Cepko facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Connie Cepko
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| Born |
Constance Louise Cepko
Laurel, Maryland, U.S.
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| Alma mater | |
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| Institutions | |
| Thesis | Interactions of the Adenovirus 100k and Hexon Proteins: Analysis using Monoclonal Antibodies and Temperature Sensitive Mutants (1982) |
| Doctoral advisor | Phillip Allen Sharp |
| Other academic advisors | Richard Mulligan |
Constance Louise Cepko is a scientist at Harvard Medical School. She is a developmental biologist and geneticist. This means she studies how living things grow and develop. She is especially known for her work on the central nervous system in animals with backbones. This includes the brain and spinal cord.
Becoming a Scientist
Connie Cepko was born in Laurel, Maryland. She went to the University of Maryland, College Park. There, she studied biochemistry and microbiology. These subjects are about the chemistry of living things and tiny living organisms.
She later earned her Ph.D. from MIT in 1982. Her advisor was a famous scientist named Phillip Allen Sharp.
What Does She Study?
After her Ph.D., Dr. Cepko worked with Richard C. Mulligan. She studied special tools called retroviral vectors. These are like tiny delivery systems. She used them to study how the retina develops. The retina is the part of your eye that senses light.
Dr. Cepko has also led important programs at Harvard Medical School. She was the head of the Biological and Biomedical Sciences graduate program. This program helps train new scientists.
Her research helps us understand how the brain and eyes form. This knowledge can lead to new ways to treat diseases.
Awards and Recognition
Dr. Cepko has received many honors for her work. In 2002, she was chosen to be part of the United States National Academy of Sciences. This is a very important group of top scientists.
In 2011, she won the Bressler Prize in Vision Science. This award honors scientists who have done great work in understanding vision. She received it for her studies on how the retina develops.
In 2019, she gave the Lisman Memorial Lecture in Vision Science at Brandeis University. This is a special talk given by leading experts in vision research.
