Alina Ustiugova, PhD
I turn complex and ambiguous therapeutic questions into structured, testable research programs — using AI-enabled discovery platforms, multi-omics and bioinformatics evidence, biological judgment, and cross-functional execution to move from hypothesis to actionable result.
From ambiguous scientific question to actionable result.
My work combines scientific depth, hands-on use of AI-enabled research tools, and the operating discipline to turn promising ideas into concrete outcomes.
I am a biology analyst and molecular biology scientist with nine years of experience across AI-enabled drug discovery and academic research. I work hands-on with scientific questions that sit at the intersection of biology, data, AI, and therapeutic development.
I lead research programs from initial hypothesis and project scoping through evidence generation, multi-omics and bioinformatics analysis, biological interpretation, prioritization, and final recommendation. My work includes target identification, biomarker discovery, indication prioritization, drug repurposing, mechanism-of-action research, and clinical-trial analysis.
I also work closely with machine-learning, bioinformatics, software, and platform teams. Through hands-on platform use and client projects, I identify analytical limitations, bugs, and unmet scientific needs, then help translate them into clearer workflows and product improvements. My experimental foundation spans immunology, molecular biology, genetics, CRISPR/Cas9, and translational research.
How I approach life sciences problems.
A combination of scientific judgment, AI-enabled research, experimental biology, and hands-on execution from question framing through final recommendation.
Therapeutic Hypothesis Generation
Target identification, biomarker discovery, indication prioritization, drug repurposing, mechanism-of-action research, and biological plausibility assessment.
AI-Enabled Scientific Research
Hands-on use of AI-driven drug-discovery platforms to explore hypotheses, synthesize evidence, interpret outputs, and identify the most informative next questions.
Scientific Strategy & Execution
Translating ambiguous questions into hypotheses, analytical plans, milestones, priorities, validation criteria, and concrete deliverables.
Multi-omics & Evidence Synthesis
Integrating genomic, transcriptomic, proteomic, clinical, bioinformatics, and literature evidence into biologically meaningful conclusions.
Platform & Product Collaboration
Identifying bugs, analytical bottlenecks, and unmet scientific needs, then translating them into actionable feedback for software and platform teams.
Experimental & Translational Biology
Immunology, molecular biology, genetics, CRISPR/Cas9, experimental design, biological validation, and translational interpretation.
Professional experience.
Biology Analyst
Lead therapeutic research programs from ambiguous scientific question to evidence-based recommendation, defining hypotheses, analytical approaches, workstreams, milestones, and validation criteria. Use AI-enabled drug-discovery platforms hands-on to identify and prioritize targets, biomarkers, indications, and mechanism-of-action hypotheses while owning a portfolio of approximately US$1M in pharma-sponsored, collaborative, and internal R&D programs.
Analyst / Data Curator
Evaluated clinical-trial designs and outcomes for pharmaceutical clients, interpreted ML-generated knowledge graphs to support therapeutic hypotheses, and curated more than 10,000 clinical-trial outcomes. Built structured biomedical evidence workflows and worked with data scientists and software developers to improve analytical reliability, data requirements, and scientific workflows.
Senior Researcher
Led research programs from hypothesis generation and grant proposal through experimental design, execution, interpretation, publication, and follow-on scientific questions. Secured four research grants and worked across immunology, molecular biology, genetics, and CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing.
Selected publications.
Selected work from a record of articles, preprints, and conference abstracts across therapeutic discovery, immunology, molecular biology, and translational research.
Autophagy regulator ATG7 links lipid metabolism to cell-fate decisions in kidney tubule health and disease
Evaluation of (Z)-endoxifen as a potential therapy for glioblastoma multiforme through computational and experimental analyses
From clock to clock: Therapeutic target discovery for aging and age-related diseases
Designing a multi-serotype Dengue virus vaccine: an in silico approach to broad-spectrum immunity
CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing demonstrates functionality of the autoimmunity-associated SNP rs12946510
Multi-dimensional immunoproteomics coupled with in vitro recapitulation of oncogenic NRASQ61R identifies diagnostically relevant autoantibody biomarkers in thyroid neoplasia
Academic background.
PhD in Molecular Biology
Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology RAS
Thesis: Functional analysis of non-coding single nucleotide polymorphisms associated with human autoimmune diseases.
MSc in Biology
Lomonosov Moscow State University
Specialization: Immunology
BSc in Biology
Lomonosov Moscow State University
Specialization: Immunology
AI-enabled life sciences, research, and collaboration.
I am interested in ambitious scientific problems at the intersection of biology, drug discovery, AI, and research platforms. For professional or research-related inquiries, feel free to get in touch.