Sarah Teichmann

Professor Sarah Teichmann holds the Chair in Stem Cell Medicine at the University of Cambridge's Cambridge Stem Cell Institute and Department of Medicine. Her research focuses on using genomics and bioinformatics to map cellular diversity, particularly in the immune system and human development. A co-founder of the Human Cell Atlas (HCA) consortium, she leads efforts to create comprehensive reference maps of all human cells. Her lab combines experimental and computational approaches, with expertise in single-cell and spatial genomics, and has pioneered methods like CellPhoneDB for cell-cell communication analysis.

Education and Career Path: PhD from the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology (Cambridge). Former Head of Cellular Genetics at the Wellcome Sanger Institute (2016–2024). Moved to her current role in 2024.

Research Interests: Deciphering tissue architecture through cell atlases, immune system development, computational method development, and translational applications of genomics. The lab's work spans immunology, developmental biology, and cancer, with a focus on integrating spatial and single-cell data.

Key Achievements: Published major HCA papers in Nature (2024), including multi-omic embryonic skeletal and limb studies. Recognized with awards like the EMBO Gold Medal and FEBS|EMBO Women in Science Award. Serves as an EMBO Member and Royal Society Fellow.

Awards: Includes prestigious honors such as the Genetics Society Mary Lyons Award and Biochemical Society GlaxoSmithKline Award. Co-leads the CIFAR MacMillan Multiscale Human Research Programme.

Grants and Funding: Supported by EU Horizon 2020, Wellcome Trust, Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative, and UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).

Labs and Teams: The Teichmann Lab is a global hub with members from diverse disciplines. Collaborates widely across institutions, including the Sanger Institute and EMBL-European Bioinformatics Institute.