Saketh

Saketh
Billerica Memorial High School
Billerica, MA

Mentor:
Gregory Way
Imaging Platform
 

Even if performed on exactly the same system, biological experiments may be performed using different tissue samples, by different lab technicians, or using lab equipment from different manufacturers.  All of these variations can give rise to batch effects, or signal in the data that comes from non-biological sources.  Removing these batch effects without disturbing the underlying biological signal is paramount for replicability and data pooling.  Saketh worked with two tools, kBET and Harmony, that are designed to detect and correct batch effects (respectively) in large biological datasets.  For the first time, he benchmarked these tools on cell morphology profiling data obtained from cell painting images.  Saketh’s results were promising, suggesting that it is possible to remove well-position and plate effects from morphology profiles.

Despite participating in BSSP entirely virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Saketh had an extremely enriching social experience at the Broad.  “The actual scientific knowledge I gained during my time here is valuable, but it’s the overall experience that was just so enriching. The people and the atmosphere made the internship great. My lab was super welcoming and supportive, and gave me great feedback and advice for research and just life in general. Also, being around such a diverse, passionate group of students was a delight,” Saketh said.