Sabine Wimmer-Kleikamp (Deutschland)
| Hello, my name is Sabine! I am 32-year old, biologist, married and mother of two beautiful children - a 3-year old girl and a 5-year old boy. |  |
I have just moved to Sydney, Australia, to start my own small research group at the University of Sydney. I am looking at cell-to-cell interactions and cellular signaling events using advanced imaging techniques, with a focus on cancer research.
When I was a child, I was always interested in the natural environment, animals and plants. I enjoyed spending time outside playing in the forest behind my parents' house close to Wiesbaden in Germany. During the last two years at high school, it was clear that I would take biology as one of my major subjects.
From school, I went to study biology at the University of Mainz, Germany, and became very interested in molecular biology. I was amazed at the degree of perfection and organisation with which molecules work together to form a whole organism. It was also intriguing to see that there is still so much to discover; so many processes that we still don't quite understand.
As part of my studies, I spent a year at the University of Glasgow in Scotland, doing the 3rd year biochemistry course. This was the first real "study abroad experience" and I loved it. After returning to Germany, I completed my studies with my diploma thesis (equivalent to a Masters) back in Mainz at the Faculty of Medicine, where I was looking at genetic changes in tumour cells versus normal cells.
I then took some time off to combine traveling with finding my "dream" job.
- Dolphin research: For four months I joined a research project in Sydney, Australia, looking at genetic variations in dolphin populations. The field work was unforgettable. During this time, I also had a look at different labs in Australia for a future PhD.
- I worked for three months as a volunteer at the Charles Darwin Research Station on the Galapagos Islands.
I then returned to Australia to do my PhD at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research in Melbourne. I had my son Max during the last year of my PhD. It is always difficult for women in science when they want to start a family. I had a lot of support from my husband and from co-workers to continue research, and I am really happy it worked out that well. I was awarded a postdoctoral fellowship to continue my research project in Melbourne and had my daughter Charlotte during the first year of my first postdoc.
In 2006 we moved to Heidelberg, Germany, with the whole family and I worked as a postdoc at EMBL. I truly enjoyed my time there, especially the fantastic research environment and EMBL's rich international community.