Name: Sohela de Rozieres, PhS
Hometown: I was born in Braunschweig, Germany, and raised in Tehran, Iran
Hobbies: Art, gardening, travel, languages, reading, geography, reducing my carbon footprint
Company: Illumina
Department: Product Development
Lab website: https://www.illumina.com/
What do you study? I am a scientist in the field of next-generation sequencing. As a product development (PD) scientist, I function as a technical lead on PD teams. We take products from concept through feasibility and development to launch and sustaining. I also have people management duties and am responsible for the growth and guidance of future development scientists. I also collaborate on various other strategic teams and committees, eg sustainability and reducing our carbon footprint.
Why is it important? Our products must be developed so that they are robust in performance when they reach our customers. They must provide consistent and repeatable data over the lifetime of the product.
What piqued your interest in science? In 4th grade, I learned about human reproduction and was profoundly fascinated by human physiology, and wanted to do science.
What do you like about working in a STEM profession? I have always been a student at heart and in science, I continue to learn every single day as we make amazing progress in discoveries and applications of those to better human health and save lives.
What are 5 general vocabulary terms someone should know going into your field of science?
DNA, RNA, proteins, sample/library preparation, next-generation SBS sequencing