Adelaide T. C. Carpenter (June 24, 1944 – May 31, 2024) was an American
fruit fly geneticist
A geneticist is a biologist or physician who studies genetics, the science of genes, heredity, and variation of organisms. A geneticist can be employed as a scientist or a lecturer. Geneticists may perform general research on genetic process ...
at the
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...
.
Biography
Carpenter was born 24 June 1944, in
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States
Georgia may also refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Georgia (name), a list of pe ...
, United States and grew up in
North Carolina
North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...
. She started graduate studies of the Genetics Department at the
University of Washington
The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...
, Seattle, in 1966. This was funded by a
National Science Foundation Graduate Fellowship.
In the 1970s, whilst at the
University of Washington
The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...
, she was one of the numerous
graduate student
Postgraduate education, graduate education, or graduate school consists of Academic degree, academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications usually pursued by higher education, post-secondary students who have ...
s mentored by geneticist
Larry Sandler
Laurence Marvin Sandler (1929–1987) was a "leading ''Drosophila'' geneticist", Dan Lindsley"Larry Sandler: Personal Recollections"''Genetics'' 151: 1233–1237 (April 1999) active during the mid-20th century. Sandler is best known for his work e ...
.
In 1976, she obtained a faculty position at the
University of California, San Diego
The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego in communications material, formerly and colloquially UCSD) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in San Diego, California, United States. Es ...
. She was the first woman at the university to be promoted to
full professor
Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a 'person who professes'. Professors ...
. In 1989, after becoming
full professor
Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a 'person who professes'. Professors ...
, she took a second
sabbatical
A sabbatical (from the Hebrew: (i.e., Sabbath); in Latin ; Greek: ) is a rest or break from work; "an extended period of time intentionally spent on something that’s not your routine job."
The concept of the sabbatical is based on the Bi ...
in the United Kingdom and became a part of the
Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, England. She later join the University of Cambridge laboratory of biologist
Michael Ashburner
Michael Ashburner (23 May 1942 – 7 July 2023) was an English biologist and Professor in the Department of Genetics at University of Cambridge. He also served as joint-head and co-founder of the European Bioinformatics Institute (EBI) of the ...
, and had remained in Cambridge for over 30 years. Along with Ashburner’s lab, she would later work with the labs of geneticist
David Glover, and finally with the lab of Felipe Teixeira.
Carpenter died on May 31, 2024.
Scientific work
In 1975, Carpenter discovered and published a paper on the
recombination nodule, an
organelle
In cell biology, an organelle is a specialized subunit, usually within a cell (biology), cell, that has a specific function. The name ''organelle'' comes from the idea that these structures are parts of cells, as Organ (anatomy), organs are to th ...
that mediates
meiotic recombination
Genetic recombination (also known as genetic reshuffling) is the exchange of genetic material between different organisms which leads to production of offspring with combinations of traits that differ from those found in either parent. In eukaryot ...
.
Media appearances
* The Immortalists (2014)
* Do You Want to Live Forever? (2007)
References
Further reading
*
Web pageat
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Carpenter, Adelaide T. C.
1944 births
2024 deaths
American geneticists
University of California, San Diego faculty
Scientists from California
Scientists from Georgia (U.S. state)
North Carolina State University alumni
Scientists from North Carolina
University of Washington alumni
20th-century American biologists
20th-century American women scientists
21st-century American biologists
21st-century American women scientists