Princeton biologists Coleen Murphy and Sabine Petry have won two of the three annual "Women in Cell Biology" awards from the American Society for Cell Biology.
Coleen Murphy
Murphy, a professor of molecular biology and the Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, won the WICB Mid-Career Award for Excellence in Research, which is open to women seven to 15 years into their careers who have made exceptional scientific contributions to cell biology or effectively translated cell biology across disciplines, and who exemplify a high level of scientific endeavor and leadership. Murphy, who is also the director of the Paul F. Glenn Laboratories for Aging Research at Princeton University, is using genetics, molecular biology and genomics to study aging at the molecular and cellular level. Her goal is not simply to extend the human lifespan but to improve overall health, by understanding the molecular mechanisms governing longevity and the processes that exhibit age-related decline.
Sabine Petry
Petry, an assistant professor of molecular biology, won the WICB Junior Award for Excellence in Research, open to women within the first seven years of a tenure-track appointment who are making exceptional scientific contributions to cell biology and developing strong independent research programs. Petry studies the microtubules — the skeletons of the cell — that allow cells to acquire their shape, position organelles, move materials and segregate chromosomes during cell division.
Murphy and Petry will receive their awards and present talks at the ASCB annual conference, held this year in Washington, DC in December.
