Krishnaswamy Receives FASEB Excellence in Science Award

Smita Krishnaswamy, associate professor of computer science and genetics, has been awarded with the FASEB Excellence in Science Award Early-Career Investigator Award from the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB).

With a unique background in mathematics, computer sciences, and computational biology, Krishnaswamy has dual appointments in both Yale’s School of Medicine and School of Engineering & Applied Science. She is widely known as one of the most innovative and creative scientists in the biological sciences.

“I am extremely honored and humbled to receive the FASEB Excellence in Science Award Early-Career Investigator Award,” Krishnaswamy said. “The award is evidence of the remarkable trainees and collaborators I have been fortunate to work with across Yale and the scientific community. I share this honor with them.”

For more than 30 years, FASEB’s Excellence in Science Awards have highlighted outstanding achievements by women in biological science. The award is bestowed to female scientists demonstrating not only excellence and innovation in their research fields, but exemplary leadership and mentorship as well.

“The 2022 Excellence in Science Award recipients exemplify the highest standards in the scientific community,” says Kevin C. Kregel, PhD, Executive Vice President/Provost at the University of Iowa and FASEB President. “Dr. Krishnaswamy is among this year’s recipients who are carrying forward FASEB’s rich history of honoring female scientists who are creating an impact in the biological and biomedical research community. It is a privilege to honor Dr. Krishnaswamy for her contributions to the scientific community.”

Recognition Beyond the Lab
The Early-Career Investigator Award recognizes the impact Krishnaswamy’s research, teaching, and community efforts have made in the scientific community. Her research is changing how biological data are analyzed and uncovering new ways to extract meaningful biological relationships that to date have been hidden.

Krishnaswamy’s commitment to excellence in teaching and mentoring is also shaping the future intersection of biology and data science. Through her passion for education and service, she has innovated and created new graduate courses at the interface of biology and data science. She also organized the Open Problems in single Cell Biology effort with the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative. Many of these classes are bringing together mathematical and computational scientists, sequencing technology developers, and biologists—an unprecedented move. In addition to her work at Yale, she mentors female high school students in her lab as summer interns.

“Dr. Krishnaswamy has quickly risen to become a leader in machine learning and computational biology at Yale,” says Antonio J. Giraldez, PhD, Chair and Professor of Genetics at Yale School of Medicine. “Her outstanding research program together with her educational and collaborative efforts across Yale have built the foundation for a lifetime of leadership in integrating education and research.”

As the recipient of the Early-Career Investigator Award, Krishnaswamy will present a lecture at the annual meeting of a FASEB member society of her choice. She will receive the award in conjunction with her lecture.

More information on FASEB Excellence in Science Awards can be found here.