From Code to Genes: Maryam’s journey into Bioinformatics

Junior science journalist Bennett Garbe interviews Maryam Ghareghani for Boys’ & Girls’ Day 2025
 

Hi Maryam, nice to meet you. I’m very happy that I can interview you today. Let’s get started, why did you study bioinformatics?

Hello, nice to meet you Bennett! I’m very happy to have this interview. I first studied computer science for my bachelor's and master's degrees at Sharif University in Iran, my home country. Back then, I was very interested in computer science and mathematics because of their analytical and logical nature, and I enjoyed solving problems—it felt like working on a puzzle. At the end of my bachelor's, I was looking for a more applied topic where I could use my computer science knowledge to solve real-world problems. That’s when I accidentally came across a bioinformatics course. I attended the course and found it fascinating. It was exciting to see how I could apply my computer science expertise to biological problems, such as understanding DNA, genetic variants, diseases, and evolution. That’s why I decided to pursue my master's thesis in bioinformatics, and since then, I have been working in this field. It’s a very exciting area!

What do you research, and what is it useful for?

At the moment, I’m researching something called tandem repeats. These are sequences in DNA that are repeated multiple times. The number of repeats can be important, for example, in some genetic diseases. To explain this further: Our bodies contain billions of cells, and each cell carries DNA molecules that store vital information for our function and development. The DNA of each person differs slightly from that of others, and these differences are called genomic variants. DNA is sequenced in laboratories using advanced sequencing machines. As bioinformaticians, we analyze the massive amounts of sequencing data generated by these machines. The data is so large that we need highly efficient algorithms, software, and computational tools to process and interpret it. Bioinformaticians develop these tools to detect and analyze genetic variants, helping researchers better understand diseases and genetic conditions.

How was your experience at Free University Berlin?

I had a very positive experience at Free University Berlin. I gained valuable teaching experience in different courses. My first teaching experience was in the course Data Science for Life Sciences, where we covered topics related to data analysis in the life sciences, including fundamental statistics and machine learning. Along with my colleague, I also supervised student groups on their machine learning projects. This was a rewarding experience for both the students and me. In the following semester, I taught a practical bioinformatics course, where I trained students on handling large-scale biological data. I introduced them to working with remote compute servers and running computational jobs efficiently on these servers. Overall, my time at FU Berlin was very enriching, both academically and personally.

Why did you come to the Max Planck Institute?

My first experience at a Max Planck Institute was at the Max Planck Institute for Informatics in Saarbrücken. At that time, I was looking for a professor whose research interests aligned with mine, and I found my PhD supervisor there. I applied for the position, was accepted, and then moved to Germany to pursue my PhD. Later, I joined my second Max Planck Institute — the Institute for Molecular Genetics — where I started working with Martin Vingron, my current supervisor. His research area was extremely interesting to me, and I was drawn to the overall scientific environment at Max Planck. The institute's strong focus on collaboration and high-quality research made it an inspiring place to work.

How was your experience at Sharif University of Technology?

Sharif University of Technology in Iran is one of the largest and most prestigious universities in Iran, especially in the field of technology. During my time there, I learned a lot about computer science and took many fascinating courses. I studied fundamental topics such as algorithms, data structures, and programming, among many others. In addition to gaining technical knowledge, I also met many talented and inspiring students, as well as excellent professors. My experience at Sharif played a significant role in shaping my academic career and ultimately helped me find the path to pursuing my PhD in Germany.

Thank you for the interview.

Yes, of course! Thank you for your time.