Meet the nextGEN
Uirá Souto Melo - Lucid Genomics
Who or what called you to lead?
Growing up in the countryside area in northern Brazil, I was often bored and asked questions—what makes plants and animals different? Do the trees talk to each other? So, my curiosity about life science grew from that.
High school biology drove me to deeper learning about genetics. I wanted to do more in the field, but there were limited opportunities in my city, so I jumped at the chance to get my Masters and PhD in São Paulo. My mother often asked where I got that ambition because it wasn’t from her!
But the scientific conditions in Brazil weren’t great. Even though I was working in one of the most prestigious labs in Brazil, the overall funding wasn’t enough for working on high-risk high-reward projects. So, I decided to move to a lab in the US at UC Berkeley for a Ph.D. internship.
Their research was at a high level, but I still wanted to travel and learn more—especially in Europe. My boss was collaborating with a German lab and, through that, I accepted the Alexander von Humboldt Fellowship to move to Berlin.
In Berlin during the coronavirus pandemic, I realised I was sitting in my comfort zone. While I was growing professionally, I didn’t feel that I was growing as a person. Then my sense of ambition kicked in and drove me to start a business.
It’s funny how the problem I set out to solve all those years ago has remained the same since the start of my academic journey. From day one, I was fascinated by the secrets hidden within DNA and how to find a way to diagnose patients by analysing their genomes.
The convergence of sequencing and deep learning technologies makes Lucid Genomics possible. While I could’ve stayed on a similar path in academia, it takes a long time to move knowledge forward to help people. Founding a business is more dynamic and fast-paced. It lets you make an impact on people’s lives sooner.
Uirá’s full profile is available for our members inside the community.