# Venki Murthy Raymond Leo Erikson Life Sciences Professor of Molecular and Cellular Biology ![MURTHY](/sites/g/files/omnuum5006/files/styles/hwp_4_5__320x400/public/2025-02/MURTHY.png?h=ec5a2e62&itok=mzts_FxW) email I was born and grew up in southern India. After completing my bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, I came to the US for graduate work. In graduate school at the University of Washington (Seattle), my interests gravitated towards neuroscience and I obtained a Ph.D. in Physiology & Biophysics. Postdoctoral work at the Salk Institute cemented my interests in neuroscience and I came to Harvard in 1999 as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Molecular & Cellular Biology. I am currently a Professor in, and the Chair of, that department and a member of the Center for Brain Science at Harvard. My current research interests center on the neural circuits and behavior, with a fondness for the sense of smell. I am closely involved in Harvard college teaching, particularly in neuroscience and its relation to AI. I was the Head Tutor of the Neuroscience concentration for 6 years and am currently the Chair of the Biophysics graduate program at Harvard. Beyond Harvard, I am also keenly interested in teaching and research initiatives that link Harvard and India (working closely with the Lakshmi Mittal South Asia Institute at Harvard). Research website: - ## Interests [Biology](/interests/biology) - ## Role [Senior Common Room](/role/senior-common-room) [Faculty](/role/faculty)