Academic partners
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Felix Hausch
Technical University of Darmstadt, Germany Expertise: Structure-based drug discovery Prof. Felix Hausch is Professor of Biochemistry and Head of the Structure-Based Drug Research Group at the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, TU Darmstadt, Germany. He is the coordinator of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Doctoral Network Macrocycles for Drug Discovery (MC4DD). Dr Hausch obtained his PhD in Chemistry from the Free University of Berlin, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship at the Department of Chemical Engineering, Stanford University (2000–2002). He subsequently worked as a Scientist in Assay Development at ESBATech AG in Zurich, before leading the Chemical Genomics Group at the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry in Munich (2005–2016). After completing his habilitation at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität Munich, he was appointed to his current position at TU Darmstadt. Prof. Hausch's research focuses on chemical biology and medicinal chemistry, with a particular emphasis on the development of novel therapeutic agents using structure-based drug design. He leads a multidisciplinary team of 25 researchers and actively coordinates or co-coordinates multiple national and international research consortia, including projects funded by the BMBF and the European Union. Publications |
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Giulia Caron
University of Turin, Italy Expertise: Design, experimental determination and interpretation of physico-chemical properties Dr. Giulia Caron is Associate Professor of Medicinal Chemistry in the Department of Molecular Biotechnology and Health Sciences at the University of Turin. Her research focuses on property-based drug discovery, with a particular interest in exploring the beyond-Rule-of-5 chemical space. She specializes in the computational prediction and experimental determination of key physicochemical properties, including ionization, lipophilicity, polarity, and chameleonicity. In addition, she contributes to the rational design of PROTACs, with an emphasis on the role of intramolecular hydrogen bonding in modulating molecular behavior. Dr. Caron has an extensive publication record, with over 120 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters to her credit. Publications |
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Giuseppe Ermondi
University of Turin, Italy Expertise: In silico strategies to deconvolute information from inter- and intramolecular interactions Publications |
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Sergey V. Ryabukhin
National Taras Shevchenko University of Kyiv, Ukraine UORSY/Enamine Expertise: Organic synthesis and combinatorial chemistry Publications |
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Sereina Riniker
ETH Zürich, Switzerland Expertise: Computational chemistry Dr Sereina Riniker received her Ph.D. in computational chemistry from ETH Zürich in 2012. From 2012 to 2014, she held a postdoctoral position in cheminformatics at the Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research in Basel and Cambridge, Massachusetts. After a postdoctoral stay at Novartis Institute of Biomedical Research, she came back to ETH Zürich as tenure-track Assistant Professor in 2014. In 2020, she was promoted to Associate Professor and in 2025 to Full Professor. Publications |
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Sebastian Pomplun
Universitet Leiden, The Netherlands Expertise: Mass spectrometry, combinatorial chemistry, drug discovery Dr Sebastian Pomplun aims to create novel drug discovery modalities for challenging disease targets combining organic synthesis, biochemistry and computational workflows. He studied in Rome, completed his PhD in organic and medicinal chemistry at the Max-Planck-Institute in Munich (2015), and performed postdoctoral research at Roche Diagnostics GmbH in Penzberg (205-2018) and in the Pentelute lab at MIT (2019-2021). Since September 2021 Dr Pomplun leads his independent research group at the Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research (LACDR, Leiden University). In 2022, he received an ERC Starting Grant, and in 2024 he was appointed as a junior investigator at the Oncode Institute. He was subsequently promoted to associate professor at Leiden University. Publications |
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Christian Heinis
Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL), Switzerland Expertise: Synthesis and screening of large combinatorial libraries of cyclic peptides Publications |
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Alethea Tabor
University College London, UK Expertise: Synthesis, structure and mode of action of cyclic peptides Publications |
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Jan Kihlberg
Uppsala University, Sweden Expertise: Drug discovery, medicinal chemistry Prof. Jan Kihlberg is a Senior Professor in Organic Chemistry at Uppsala University. Before moving to Uppsala in 2013 Prof. Kihlberg spent ten years at AstraZeneca R&D in Gothenburg, seven of which as Director of Medicinal Chemistry. He obtained his PhD in Organic Chemistry from Lund University in 1988, carried out postdoctoral research in synthetic carbohydrate chemistry at the National Research Council Canada and established his independent research group at Lund University in 1991 before becoming full professor at Umeå University in 1996. His major research interests are to understand what properties convey cell permeability, aqueous solubility and target binding to drugs in the beyond rule of 5 space and to translate this knowledge into guidelines for design. He has published more than 200 peer–reviewed publications and book chapters: https://scholar.google.se/citations?user=ncpQN6AAAAAJ&hl=sv. Publications |
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Mate Erdelyi
Uppsala University, Sweden Expertise: NMR spectroscopy Prof. Máté Erdélyi received his degree from Semmelweis University and earned his PhD in Organic Chemistry at Uppsala University. He conducted postdoctoral research in physical organic chemistry at the University of California, San Diego, and in NMR spectroscopy and structural biology at the Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry. He began his independent research career at the University of Gothenburg. In 2017 he returned to Uppsala University as full Professor. His research interests span NMR method development, medicinal chemistry, halogen bonding, and natural product chemistry. His current research group, comprising of 15 members, primarily contributes with solution NMR-based ensemble analysis to the success of the MC4DD project. Publications |
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William Unsworth
University of York, UK Expertise; organic synthesis Dr. William Unsworth completed his PhD in Organic Chemistry at the University of Oxford, before joining the University of York as a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the group of Prof. Richard Taylor. He was subsequently appointed as a Research and Teaching Fellow in 2013. In 2016, he began his independent academic career as a Leverhulme Trust Early Career Fellow, and later became the inaugural holder of the prestigious Eleanor Dodson Fellowship. He is currently a Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) in Organic Chemistry at the University of York. Dr. Unsworth’s research focuses on synthetic methodology, with particular emphasis on ring expansion strategies for the construction of medium-sized rings and macrocycles, catalyst-selective synthesis, and biocatalysis. His work has been recognized with several awards, including the Royal Society of Chemistry Hickinbottom Award for his innovative contributions to the synthesis of spirocycles and macrocycles. Publications |
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Industrial Partners
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Sven Ruf
Sanofi, Germany Expertise: Medicinal and organic chemistry, heterocyclic chemistry Dr Sven Ruf is a distinguished researcher at Sanofi with 20+ years of experience in medicinal chemistry, specializing in innovative treatments for immune-mediated inflammatory diseases. He is an expert in diverse therapeutic modalities, including small-molecule transcription factor modulators, ion channel, kinase, and protease inhibitors, degraders, and macrocycles. His key achievements include significant contributions to advancing therapeutic strategies in cardiovascular, metabolic and inflammatory diseases. Dr Ruf has authored 34 peer-reviewed research publications and holds 25 patent applications. As a leading figure in the MC4DD program, he actively fosters academic–industrial collaboration and drives innovation at the interface of disciplines. Moreover, he is a pioneer in integrating AI-driven approaches into medicinal chemistry. He is committed to leveraging cutting-edge synthetic methodologies and advanced technologies to design transformative solutions for unmet medical needs, in order to further the potential of modern drug discovery and improve global healthcare. Publications |
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Stella Vukelic
AbbVie, Germany Expertise: Medicinal chemistry Dr. Stella Vukelic is a Senior Scientist in Medicinal Chemistry at AbbVie, where she focuses on innovative therapeutic strategies for neurodegenerative diseases and migraine. In addition to her industrial research, she actively participates in the Prague-Weizmann Drug Discovery School, delivering annual lectures at this summer school. Before joining AbbVie, Dr. Vukelic worked as a medicinal chemist at Galapagos NV in Belgium on multiple projects, primarily in metabolic diseases and immunology. She earned her PhD from the Free University of Berlin, conducting her research at the Max Planck Institute for Colloids and Interfaces under the supervision of Prof. Koksch and Prof. Seeberger. Her research focused on the development of continuous flow processes to access fluorinated amino acids and their derivatives. She completed her undergraduate studies in chemistry in her hometown of Zagreb, Croatia. Publications |
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Frauke Pohlki
AbbVie, Germany Expertise: Medicinal chemistry Dr. Frauke Pohlki is Director of Medicinal Chemistry at AbbVie, with 15+ years of experience in medicinal chemistry. She is dedicated to exploring innovative approaches to address some of the most prevalent and serious brain disorders, including Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, migraine, and schizophrenia, as well as targeting unmet needs in eye care to make a meaningful impact on patients' lives. Within her role, Dr Pohlki has led multidisciplinary teams in drug discovery and PET tracer projects, contributing to the development of several clinical drug and imaging candidates. She has authored more than 60 research publications and patents, and her team is committed to advancing innovative and sustainable technologies in the field of Medicinal Chemistry. Prior to joining AbbVie, she completed a three-year postdoctoral fellowship at Boston University in the group of James Panek, focusing on natural product synthesis. Frauke earned her PhD in 2004 from the Ruprecht-Karls-University Heidelberg under the supervision of Prof. Sven Doye, specializing in organic chemistry and homogenous catalysis. Publications |
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Stefan Schiesser
AstraZeneca, Sweden Expertise: Medicinal chemistry Dr. Stefan Schiesser is Director of Medicinal Chemistry at AstraZeneca, where he focuses on innovative therapeutic strategies for respiratory and immunological diseases. His work has contributed to the discovery of two clinical candidates, and he has successfully led multiple academic collaborations. In addition to his industrial research, Dr. Schiesser is an active educator, delivering annual lectures in the Master’s program at the University of Gothenburg. He is the author of 24 scientific publications, one book chapter, and two patent applications. Before joining AstraZeneca, Dr. Schiesser completed a two-year postdoctoral fellowship at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, USA, in the group of Prof. Movassaghi, where he achieved the total synthesis of two complex natural products. He earned his PhD from Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität Munich under the supervision of Prof. Carell, with a research focus on cisplatin-based chemotherapeutics and epigenetics. Publications |
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Sanja Kostrun
Selvita, Croatia Expertise: Computational and medicinal chemistry Dr. Sanja Kostrun has 10 years of academic experience, including a PhD and Postdoctoral research in computational chemistry, complemented by 23 years in the pharmaceutical industry spanning big pharma, biotech, and CRO environments. Her expertise in medicinal chemistry spans multiple therapeutic areas—anti-inflammatory, anti-infective, CNS, and oncology—across the drug discovery spectrum from hit identification to lead optimization. She has contributed to projects targeting a wide range of biological mechanisms, including kinases, GPCRs, transporters, epigenetic targets, and protein-protein interactions. While experienced in diverse chemical modalities, her enduring passion lies in the design and analysis of beyond-the-rule-of-five (bRo5) molecules. Her work emphasizes conformational analysis, ADME/PK prediction, chameleonic behavior, and the disruption of protein-protein interactions. Publications |
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Nele-Johanna Hempel
NovoNordisk, Denmark Expertise: Drug formulation Dr Nele-Johanna Hempel is a Principal Scientist in drug delivery technologies at Novo Nordisk, where she leads research on innovative drug delivery systems to improve treatment for people with chronic cardiometabolic diseases. She earned her PhD from the University of Copenhagen, focusing on drug delivery solutions for small molecules. Her doctoral research was recognized by APV in 2021 with the award for the best PhD thesis in pharmaceutical sciences in Europe. Dr. Hempel is also a licensed pharmacist, holding a degree from the University of Hamburg. Publications |
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Ivan Kondratov
Enamine, Germany Expertise: medicinal and bioorganic chemistry Dr Ivan Kondratov graduated from the University of Kyiv (Ukraine) in 2004 and defended his PhD as a candidate of Chemical Sciences at the Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry and Petrochemistry, NAS of Ukraine in 2008. Starting from 2009, he actively collaborated with Prof. Dr. Günter Haufe (University of Münster, Germany) and was a guest scientist in Münster for several times in the period 2009–2017. In 2011 he started working for Enamine Ltd (Kyiv, Ukraine) where he held different positions, ranging from the Team Lead to Head of Medicinal Chemistry. In 2023 Ivan Kondratov and colleagues launched the German site of Enamine – Enamine Germany GmbH. His scientific research is in the field of heterocyclic chemistry, synthesis of Building Blocks for Drug Discovery, unnatural amino acids , organofluorine chemistry, medicinal chemistry and compound library design. Publications |
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Carsten Kroll
F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd, Switzerland Expertise: Medicinal chemistry Dr Carsten Kroll is a chemist with over 15 years of experience spanning academic research and pharmaceutical industry leadership. He began his studies in chemistry at the University of Mainz (2002–2007), during which he spent a semester abroad at the Brookhaven National Laboratory in the United States in 2005. He earned his diploma from the University of Mainz in 2007. He pursued doctoral studies at the University of Basel under the supervision of Prof. Helma Wennemers, completing his PhD in 2012 with a focus on peptide chemistry and molecular recognition. From 2012 to 2014, he conducted postdoctoral research at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the laboratory of Prof. Barbara Imperiali, where he explored complex biochemical pathways and molecular tools for biological systems. Following his academic training, Dr. Kroll joined F. Hoffmann-La Roche in Basel, where he held the position of Lab Head and Project Leader in Medicinal Chemistry from 2014 to 2020. In this role, he led multidisciplinary teams in early drug discovery projects, contributing to the development of novel therapeutic candidates. Since 2020, he has served as External Innovation and Collaboration Lead at Roche, where he is responsible for identifying and fostering strategic partnerships in research and development. In this role, he actively engages with academic and industrial collaborators worldwide to drive innovation in drug discovery. Publications |
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