10 Facts About Kathy Niakan

Kathy Niakan is a developmental biologist, working in human developmental and stem cell biology.

Kathy Niakan obtained a BSc in cell and molecular biology and a BA in English literature from the University of Washington.

In 2005, Kathy Niakan obtained her PhD in stem cell and developmental biology from the University of California, Los Angeles, where she worked in the laboratory of Edward McCabe.

Kathy Niakan went on to be a research fellow with Kevin Eggan at Harvard University, working with human and mouse stem cells to study human embryogenesis and cell potency.

Kathy Niakan then moved to the University of Cambridge Anne McLaren Laboratory for Stem Cell Biology in the Cambridge Biomedical Campus where she continued to investigate the molecular basis of early cell development in humans and mice.

In 2013, Kathy Niakan became a group leader at the MRC National Institute for Medical Research in London.

Kathy Niakan was a finalist in the inaugorary UK Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in 2019.

In 2021, Professor Kathy Niakan was appointed as an honorary group leader in the Epigenetics research programme as part of the Babraham Institute.

In February 2016 Kathy Niakan was given the go-ahead by the UK Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority to genetically modify human embryos.

Kathy Niakan planned to use the CRISPR technique to answer questions like what genetic faults cause some women to miscarry, what causes infertility and what is crucial for a healthy embryo.