Uhlmann will support the current Interim Head of Research, Ewan Birney, in managing the institute’s 17 research groups. She will also continue in her role as a Research Group Leader. 

EMBL-EBI has been a global leader in computational biology research since its inception in 1994. Its research groups work in a highly collaborative and interdisciplinary way. Current research themes include sequence and structural alignment, genome analysis, cancer genomics, pathogen informatics and more. 

The new Deputy Head of Research will have a key role in embedding EMBL-EBI research within the transversal themes in EMBL’s Molecules to Ecosystems Programme 2022-26

Uhlmann joined EMBL-EBI as a Research Group Leader in September 2018. Her research focuses on mathematical and deep learning models for bioimage quantification. She holds a PhD in Electrical Engineering from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL), and is a member in the Bio Imaging and Signal Processing Technical Committee of IEEE Signal Processing Society.

Virginie is also a key contact for EMBL’s Theory transversal theme, which promotes theory-guided paths to understanding and conceptualising the underlying principles of biological systems.

“EMBL-EBI’s research groups are uniquely placed to exploit the institute’s expertise in big data management and software development, as well as EMBL’s rich history of molecular biology research,” said Uhlmann. “It’s a stimulating and fun research environment that combines fundamental biological research and the latest developments in computer science, and I’m looking forward to supporting its growth over the coming years.”

“Virginie has displayed strong leadership skills and a keen interest in advancing the research programme at EMBL-EBI,” said Ewan Birney, Director and Interim Head of Research at EMBL-EBI and Deputy Director General of EMBL. “She will be a great asset to EMBL-EBI in this role.”

Edit