Dr Kavyaa Venkat

Research Manager, Human Genetics and Generative & Synthetic Genomics

The Research Management team acts as a key interface for institute-wide collaboration, working alongside experts in grant administration, financial budgeting, scientific operations, recruitment, contracts, ethics, and risk to support the Programme's diverse portfolio of core and third-party projects.

Academic background and the Faculties I support

Over the years as a lab-based researcher, I have studied the non-coding gene regulatory landscape of cholera infection using multi-omics approaches (Kai Papenfort’s lab in Germany).

Most recently, during my postdoctoral work at AstraZeneca in Cambridge, I developed high-throughput biochemical assays to characterize the toxicity and off-target profiles of antisense oligonucleotides. This capability has contributed to the development of robust machine learning models that are proficient at predicting adverse events early in the pre-clinical drug development process.

While I have enjoyed my time in the lab, my role as a Research Manager at the Wellcome Sanger Institute has allowed me to make a broader contribution beyond the bench by delivering cross-functional operational and strategic support that enables cutting-edge scientific research.

My timeline

• Joined as a Research Manager, Wellcome Sanger Institute (Hinxton - UK)

• Started as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow, AstraZeneca (Cambridge - UK)

• Earned Ph.D. in RNA Microbiology, graduating magna cum laude

• Commenced Ph.D. research in Kai Papenfort's lab (Munich and Jena, Germany)

• Graduated M.Sc. in Biology from Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (Munich, Germany)