I am a third year PhD student with Professor Lara Malins. I graduated from the Australian National University in 2022 with a Bachelor of Science (Advanced) with First Class Honours in Chemistry. My Honours research with Professor Lara Malins focused on the development of antimalarial peptide-drug conjugates. Subsequently, my PhD research has comprised of several projects, all broadly focused on developing synthetic chemistry approaches to unlock peptides as therapeutics, including development of tools for understanding their biological function and novel therapeutic design.

In collaboration with AstraZeneca, I have recently been exploring chemical ligation methodologies to facilitate the conjugation of peptides and siRNA. Both peptides and siRNA have exciting prospects for being able to modulate so-called ‘difficult’ drug targets that are often regarded as undruggable, however, therapeutic application of both have been limited by issues including stability and ability to access their desired target. Recently, interest in peptide-siRNA conjugates has grown, with the peptide typically acting as a targeting ligand to facilitate delivery of siRNA to the required tissue for gene-silencing activity. However, given siRNA are a relatively new therapeutic modality, methodology for chemical ligation has been greatly underexplored.

My 10-week placement with AstraZeneca aimed to synthesise a library of biologically-relevant peptide-siRNA conjugates, building upon initial proof-of-concept reactions completed in Australia using model peptides. During my time at AstraZeneca, I was able to synthesise a library of these peptides, including exploring several linker sequences, and then conjugate these to siRNA. It was extremely beneficial to have access to both their peptide and oligonucleotide synthesis and purification equipment, with this visit in particular greatly improving my oligonucleotide chemistry training and skills. Near the end of my visit, I was also able to learn to screen the biological activity of these using SPR, further informing the trajectory of this project.

During a typical day at AstraZeneca, I would spend the majority of the day in the laboratory, with this mainly in their New Modalities (peptide, lipids, oligonucleotides and conjugates) synthetic chemistry lab. However, I was also able to spend time in their separations facility, analytical facility and biophysics laboratory. I was also fortunate to be invited to attend all the typical meetings that their scientists attend, including medicinal chemistry department meetings, target/project review meetings and several weekly research seminars. These meetings provided great exposure to their therapeutic development pipeline, giving a unique look at industry priorities and trends within the field.

Outside of the workday, I tried to explore Gothenburg and the surrounding Scandinavian area as much as possible, including an amazing weekend trip to see the Northern Lights!         This experience was invaluable for not only improving my knowledge and skills, particularly within the peptide-conjugate and oligonucleotide fields, but also was a fantastic opportunity to experience the pharmaceutical industry and establish a network within this. As I near the end of my PhD, this was extremely informative as to potential career paths. It was also fascinating to see how an industry environment differs from an academic environment, in terms of priorities and goals, as well as how projects are developed and progressed.

I would encourage everyone interested in an industry placement to take up the opportunity within their PhDs. Industry placements are a rapid way to improve your knowledge of the field, particularly providing insights into areas that are likely to have significant growth/interest over the coming years, as well as improve your skills, with these visits providing opportunities to access cutting-edge technologies that are not typically available within the university environment. All these learnings ultimately will accelerate the progress of your research. It is also a fantastic way to grow your scientific network, with everyone extremely welcoming and willing to share their knowledge.