Leading ladies: diversity, adversity and seeing the unseen
Born in Vancouver, British Columbia in 1917, Dr. (Irene) Ayako Uchida has had a long and exciting career in science starting at SickKids.
Overcoming great challenges as a young Japanese Canadian whose family was torn apart by the war, Dr. Uchida persevered and triumphed over considerable challenges.
She began her studies in English Literature at the University of British Columbia. She was only able to complete two years of study before her life was forever interrupted as a result of the Second World War. In 1942 she was sent to an internment facility and ultimately separated from her family. Uchida received support to relocate and continue her education at the University of Toronto in 1944. By 1946 she had earned a Bachelor of Arts degree and planned to pursue a Master's in Social Work.
Again, her life took a new path when one of her professors encouraged her to enter the field of genetics. Uchida completed her PhD in human genetics in 1951 and began her career at SickKids. By the time the SickKids Research Institute launched in 1954, she was a full time research associate at SickKids and a lecturer in the Department of Zoology at the University of Toronto.
Dr. Uchida worked closely with her colleagues including another SickKids leading lady Norma Ford Walker, in the genetics program at the Research Institute. Uchida became one of the first Canadian scientists to work in the field of cytogenetics, the study of chromosomes. Through this work, Uchida and Ford Walker focused much of their research on the study of twins and children with Down syndrome, congenital heart diseases and other abnormalities.
In 1960 Uchida was appointed Director of the Department of Medical Genetics at the Children's Hospital in Winnipeg, Manitoba and began teaching at the University of Manitoba. Studying what can’t always be seen led Uchida to her most important work. Perhaps her greatest achievement was to find evidence of the link between radiation exposure and genetic abnormalities such as Down syndrome.
Uchida moved to Hamilton, Ontario in 1970 and established the Cytogenetics Laboratory at McMaster University. She later initiated a genetics-counseling program. From 1991to1995, she served as Director of Cytogenetics at the Oshawa General Hospital.
Now Professor Emeritus at McMaster University in Hamilton, Uchida’s career spans over fifty incredible years. She has published more than ninety-five scientific papers and received numerous awards including Woman of the Century 1867 to 1967 for Manitoba, the Founder's Award, Canadian College of Medical Geneticists in 1995 and an Honourary Doctor of Science from the University of Western Ontario in 1996. Dr. Irene Uchida became an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1993. She continues to work with families with Down syndrome children and maintains her passion for research.