GABRIELLA INES BIANCHINO

• Utilized chemistry of phosphoramidites leading to three promising antimalarial compounds.
• Prodrug synthesis of a known inhibitor of IspH
In the Medicinal Chemistry laboratory of Prof. Dr. Serge Van Calenbergh.

• Performed chemical optimization of hit compounds targeting IspH, under the guidance of Peter Maas.
• Collaborated with cross-functional teams to integrate drug discovery pipelines.
• Learned PyMOL basics for pharmacophore-based search using the X-ray structure of an IspH homolog.

PhD supervisor: Dr. Myriam Seemann.
Production and purification of an oxygen-sensitive iron-sulfur enzyme, IspH, essential for the survival of critical pathogens. A complete kinetic and biophysical enzymatic characterization enabled an in vitro screening campaign of more than 300 compounds by enzymatic assay under anaerobic conditions leading to a promising lead candidate for possibly fighting AMR.

• Conducted independent doctoral research on the role of an oxygen-sensitive iron-sulfur enzyme,
IspH, essential for the survival of critical pathogens. Laboratory of Dr. Myriam Seemann.
• Performed protein expression and purification; in-depth kinetic and biophysical studies on IspH
leading to two unprecedented X-ray structures.
• Designed and executed an in vitro screening campaign of over 300 compounds under anaerobic
conditions, which led to the identification of one promising drug candidate for fighting antimicrobial
resistance (AMR).
• Collaborated with international teams under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie program.
• Published scientific articles, and delivered oral and poster presentations at international meetings.

• Developed chemical tools for targeted degradation of the β2 adrenergic receptor under the guidance of
Dr. Matthias Schiedel in the Medicinal Chemistry laboratory of Prof. Peter Gmeiner.
• Synthesized PROTAC molecules that were tested in binding-protein assays.
• Applied Solid-Phase Peptide Synthesis (SPPS) delivering around 10 final peptides.