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AdAlta Limited is a clinical stage biotechnology company using its i-body platform to discover and develop next generation protein therapeutics addressing drug targets that are challenging for other technologies. AdAlta is developing innovative solutions to debilitating diseases. AdAlta’s i-body® drug discovery platform goes where antibodies do not, to create new options for debilitating diseases.

PhD student, Nadezhda Aleksandrova, was keen to do a wet lab-based industry internship as she enjoys working in the lab and considers her practical skills valuable in an industry setting. She was attracted to the PRI.Intern because the AdAlta internship description aligned perfectly with laboratory skills she already have and can apply directly to the advertised project. In addition, the internship offered her the chance to learn new things, especially about working with protein therapeutics and, more generally, what it means to work in an industry setting.

“For me, APR.Intern was a great way of finding an internship in industry as it is the only platform that advertises internship projects for PhD students. They made the internship application easy and made the arrangements between the internship organisation and my university very straightforward.”

During Nadezhda’s study at the University of Queensland, she is interested in a special type of bacterial toxins called ABC toxins. These toxins are unique because they can be used as bioinsecticides- they can kill certain insect pests, such as grass grubs that destroy pastures, with very high specificity, while being non-toxic to beneficial insects, the environment and humans. She uses structural biology techniques such as cryo-electron microscopy and X-ray crystallography to understand the molecular structure of ABC toxins and what makes them so specific to insect pests.

Nadezhda has worked on two projects In AdAlta. Her main project focused on the optimisation of production of i-bodies in the lab to generate higher product yields. The process of protein production optimisation is key to ensure that the i-bodies are of high purity, stability and of high enough yield for downstream applications.

In her second project, Nadezhda’s aim was to improve the stability of i-bodies using computational tools. Improving the stability of protein therapeutics is incredibly important for preserving the biological function of the therapeutic. From her projects, she expected to get an optimised workflow for the production of i-bodies and have improved i-bodies that will perform better as therapeutics.

Nadia has identified the opportunity to implement her computational and structural biology experience to help improving AdAlta’s drug discovery platform. Despite various scientific challenges, her work also provided insights and generated valuable results for AdAlta’s protein production activities.

– Lukasz Kowalczyk, PhD, Senior Scientist – Protein Expression and Purification at AdAlta

The most valuable learning outcomes from the internship experience for Nadezhda were about getting to know how a biotech company works. For example, she had the chance to learn about the business side of running a company, including how to identify clients and investors, funding and raising capital or gaining and maintaining competitive advantage, which is something she did not have exposure to before. She also learned a lot about teamwork, setting goals and strategic planning and prioritisation.

Nadezhda would strongly recommend APR.Intern to other students, as they provide great opportunities for the development of transferrable skills that would make PhD graduates more employable.

“My highlight at AdAlta was definitely the team and how well we worked together,” she said, “They were very welcoming and made me feel like a part of the team since the day I started. Because of this, and because of the collaborative nature of our work, I feel like I did contribute to the projects.”

The work Nadezhda participated in AdAlta has the potential to lead to improved yield and stability of therapeutic i-bodies, which can accelerate their development into drugs for diseases like fibrosis.

“My internship is a major deciding factor for my career goals, and I believe it is an essential attribute for my future employment,” she said.

 

Nadezhda Aleksandrova is completing a PhD from The University of Queensland.

Nadezhda Aleksandrova was a recipient of the MTP Connect Voucher, WiSE Subsidy.