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Plant & Food Research has merged with AgResearch, Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research and Scion to form the Bioeconomy Science Institute

New Cultivar Innovation

Dr Astra Heywood

Bioinformatics Scientist and Computational Engineer

I am a bioinformatics analyst with specialised expertise in genomics and genetic data analysis. I develop end-to-end solutions for variant and haplotype identification using short-read sequencing, and I assess emerging sequencing technologies to guide data-driven decision-making. I build and manage robust, automated analysis pipelines (e.g., using Nextflow) and maintain large-scale genetic databases and genotype array infrastructures to support research and product development.