Dr Claire Cupples is Dean of Science at Simon Fraser University and a Professor of Molecular Biology & Biochemistry.
Dr Cupples received her BSc at the University of Victoria, her MSc at the University of Calgary and her PhD at York University. She pursued post-doctoral studies at UCLA. She has held academic and administrative positions previously at Concordia University, in Montreal, and at the University of Victoria. Her research focuses on the causes, consequences and prevention of mutations in microbes and in humans. Dr. Cupples has taught university courses in microbial molecular biology for 20 years and currently serves as President of the Canadian Council of Deans of Science and sits on the boards of TRIUMF, BCNet, Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre and the Science Fair Foundation of BC.
From Dr Cupples' research page: DNA, the keeper of genetic information in all organisms, is constantly modified by internal and external factors during the cell's lifetime. Many types of DNA modification cause mutations. Although mutations may be harmful to individual cells or organisms, mutation in populations is valuable because it leads to genetic variation and ultimately to evolution. There are even circumstances when it is useful to increase the number of mutations in a cell, for example in genes that code for antibodies. Maintaining the optimal balance between genetic stability and variability requires the cell to balance the frequency with which modifications to the DNA occur, and the efficiency with which the original sequence is restored by the various DNA repair pathways.
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