Denmark
Research and Development leader passionate about using mRNA-based therapeutics to make a better world. Experienced in leading drug project and platform technology teams with a focus on therapeutic gene editing, vaccines, and rare diseases. Experienced with leading scientific teams including postdoctoral students, senior scientists, and principal scientists. Focusing on applying science to develop ground breaking technologies. I have a unique combination of professional skills and experience combined with cultural awareness being a result of living and working in multiple European countries. My professional experience comes from academia, biotech and pharmaceutical industry. My way of working blends strategic thinking with a very collaborative mindset. I have experience in leading scientific teams, yet I genuinely enjoy working in a matrix structure in teams with diverse skills and expertise. I am able to take informed decisions leveraging expertise of other functions. I am team-oriented, execution-focused, and highly motivated. I am resourceful, I am able drive team performance to contribute best to the projects. My greatest scientific achievement was being a part of the development of mRNA-based Covid-19 vaccines during the pandemic. It was a tremendous effort to transform the long-known mRNA molecule into an effective drug. I am proud I was a part of this project. It was a very intense period, yet the most beautiful time in my scientific career. I gave me a unique opportunity to acquire experience in of drug discovery process: lead generation and optimization, potency testing, safety assessment, early process development. I have been reporting to CSO, CTO. Uniquely combining expertise in mRNA - rare diseases - nucleic acid delivery - RNA therapeutics - lipid nanoparticles - mRNA LNP CMC - delivery - target discovery - target validation - vaccine development - potency assay - high-throughput screening
I have joined CureVac in 2016 where I am responsible for projects aiming at efficient and safe delivery on mRNA-based therapeutics to the eye, the lung and CNS. CureVac has developed and optimized its own versatile delivery platform (CureVac Carrier Molecule – CVCM), which can be tailored to deliver therapeutic mRNAs to different organs and tissues. In my group, we have established a broad range of in vitro and in vivo assays allowing the identification of suitable formulations for broad range of applications (LNP, liposome, polymer). I am a PI on our very prestigious collaboration with Harvard and Yale Universities. ---
Biophotonic group of Philipps University of Marburg Project: Light-addressable capsules as vehicles for controlled cargo release. Project: Targeted delivery of gold nanoparticles.