February 10, 2025 | Lasergene
In celebration of DNASTAR’s 40th Anniversary, we are featuring monthly profiles of Lasergene users and DNASTAR employees. This month, we are highlighting the work of DNASTAR Software Engineer Elizabeth Zingsheim.
Not only is Elizabeth a talented software developer, but she is also helping the next generation learn to program through her mentorship of a high school FIRST ® Robotics Competition (FRC) robotics team.
Read on to learn more about Elizabeth!
Originally from Milwaukee, I earned dual degrees in Genetics and Genomics and Computer Science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. While still an undergraduate, I did computational research on the role of biofilms in M. tuberculosis infections. This research experience led me to an internship at DNASTAR in my senior year of college in 2019. As an intern, I contributed to benchmarking for our SeqMan NGen long read sequence assembly project.
After graduation, I transitioned to a full-time software engineering role and have been with DNASTAR ever since. For the first few years, I worked at the Madison headquarters. I then returned to Milwaukee to be closer to family and friends, and now work remotely. The photo below is of me and my family at the Milwaukee Art Museum.
I mainly contribute to the development of our SeqMan NGen and MegAlign Pro applications. I played a key role in adding new functionality to SeqMan NGen and now focus on its maintenance and on the addition of new features and workflows. My work on MegAlign Pro includes enhancements to branch selection, phylogenetic tree styling, and expanding the functionality of the pairwise aligner.
I’m passionate about both genetics and software engineering, so I truly appreciate the opportunity to combine these interests at DNASTAR. It’s exciting to know that the software I develop plays a role in advancing scientific discovery and expanding our understanding of the world.
What I find most challenging and interesting about my job is the need to think about the software I work on from two distinct angles: the technical standpoint of a software engineer building the application, and the practical needs of the researchers who will rely on it for their work.
I am a big fan of Wisconsin sports (Go Badgers, Brewers, and Packers!), and enjoy going to and watching games whenever I can. I enjoy running in my free time, and ran my first half marathon in the fall.
I am also a programming mentor for my brother’s high school FRC robotics team, where we build and program a competition-level robot over the course of 3-4 months. The photo shows me with one of our competition robots. (And yes, you DO see a random third hand in the photo, but it’s from a student working on the robot, not an AI artifact. 🤣)
My main roles there are teaching students Java and how to program a functional robot, which is rewarding both because I’ve learned a lot about a very different field of engineering than the one I work in, and also because teaching kids how to program has taught me how to approach problems in different ways.
My travel bucket list includes a return trip to Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico, where I backpacked a few years ago. The photo shows me at the top of Philmont’s Baldy Mountain. I’m also planning to explore more of North America’s national parks, with Banff in Canada high on my list.
Elizabeth’s dedication to both scientific advancement and STEM education makes her a true asset to DNASTAR and the broader community. From developing cutting-edge bioinformatics software to inspiring the next generation of programmers, she embodies the spirit of innovation and mentorship. We’re incredibly proud to have Elizabeth on the DNASTAR team and look forward to seeing the continued impact of her excellent work on our Lasergene applications.
Elizabeth is a long way from reaching her 40th birthday. But you can celebrate DNASTAR’s 40th birthday 🎉 with special offers on Lasergene that are not available through our website.
Click the button below to request a quote today.