Sarah Kimmins – Science Applied to Teaching

Sarah Kimmins credits her success as a scientist to her education at NSAC and to the NSAC Vice President Academic, Dr. Leslie MacLaren. “Leslie taught me how to write research papers, apply for grants and present research findings, but most of all she taught me how to study science with integrity,” says Sarah. “She basically taught me everything I know about being a scientist.”

Sarah, a native of Halifax, Nova Scotia, graduated with her Bachelor of Science degree from Dalhousie in 1996. She then pursued her Master’s degree at NSAC under the supervision of Dr. Leslie MacLaren. Dr. MacLaren was interested in molecular and hormonal mechanisms regulating bovine reproduction.

“I wanted Leslie as a supervisor because she studied reproduction and it was a research area that I was attracted to,” says Sarah. For her Master’s degree, Sarah studied the role of the bovine estrous cycle in the regulation of adhesion proteins on the uterine surface that had been implicated in embryo attachment. The goal of her research was to gain insight into what makes the uterus receptive.

“The work was important because it identified molecular markers of pregnancy as early as day 16 following breeding, which is very early and also a critical time for embryo survival, ” said MacLaren. Sarah graduated with her Master’s degree from NSAC in 1999. After that, she stayed in MacLaren's lab to work on her Ph.D. Her Ph.D thesis was an extension of her Master’s work. She studied what specific hormonal factors regulated the timing of expression in the family of adhesion proteins involved in uterine receptivity. Sarah received her Ph.D from Dalhousie University in 2003.

"During her MSc and PhD, Sarah identified a number of protein receptors expressed at the interface between the bovine embryo and its mother's uterus,” says MacLaren. “She explored the possible roles of these receptors in the fetomaternal communication process by examining how their expression patterns change in relation to key events happening during pregnancy recognition.” After receiving her Ph.D., Sarah undertook her Post-Doctoral training at the University of Louis Pasteur in Strasbourg, France.

In September of 2005, Sarah became a member of the faculty at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec. She is an Assistant Professor in the university’s Department of Animal Science.

“Sarah has always been an enthusiastic animal-lover and biologist,” says MacLaren. “And among her many strengths is a keen interest in 'connecting the dots' between cell regulatory molecules and function using pictorial models.”

Sarah is also an Associate Member of the Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics at McGill University. Sarah teaches courses in mammalian physiology, bio-techniques and general pharmacology. She teaches honours students in a research intensive program as well.

Sarah believes her education at NSAC prepared her for her work as a professor. “My training at NSAC gave me a strong foundation in research and reproduction and I also gained valuable experience as a teaching assistant,” she says.” As a professor, Sarah’s typical day consists of meeting with students that are working on projects in her lab, discussing funding opportunities or collaborations with colleagues and preparing and teaching lectures.

In addition to her duties as a professor, Sarah is very involved with research and has contributed to 20 scientific publications. She is currently studying the significance of epigenetic programming to gene transcription in spermatogenesis and the ovary. Paternal infertility contributes to 30-50 per cent of all infertility cases, yet in many cases the mechanisms underlying its causes are unknown. In particular, Sarah is interested in how gene activating histone modifications are altered by environmental factors including diet and drugs as well as the downstream consequences for gene transcription of fertility and disease. For these studies, she uses tissue culture and mouse and pig models. Sarah’s research programs are funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Canadian Foundation for Innovation, Fonds de Recherche sur la Nature et les Technologies and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.

Sarah chose to study at NSAC because of its environment. “At NSAC, the environment is very collegial and there is a real sense of community,” she says. She feels that the small class sizes at NSAC allow students to receive the individual attention they need.

“I think NSAC has better communication because it is a small school. Students really get to know their classmates and can discuss their interests with them,” she says. She was also impressed by the strong programs at NSAC and the great opportunities available for students to learn applied science in the topics of plants and animals.

Currently, Sarah lives in Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue with her husband, Jean Paul Parkhill, and their two-year-old son, Eric. Her husband has a Ph.D. in oceanography and teaches biology at John Abbot College in Montreal. Sarah enjoys being active in her spare time by playing with her son, biking, walking her dog, skiing and riding horses.