Research Overview
Research Interests:
Dr Hadia Almahli leads the Medicinal Chemistry research programme at Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³», focusing on the design, synthesis, and biological evaluation of novel therapeutic and diagnostic agents. Her research spans infectious diseases, oncology, and neurodegeneration, integrating synthetic organic chemistry, medicinal chemistry, natural product-inspired drug discovery, and structure-activity relationship (SAR) optimisation.
Her portfolio includes the development of new antibiotics, antituberculosis agents, kinase inhibitors for triple‑negative breast cancer, anti-trypanosomal compounds for Chagas disease, and antiviral candidates targeting CHIKV. She also advances next‑generation diagnostic technologies for neurodegenerative diseases using chemical antibody platforms, in collaboration with leading UK and international partners.
Her group welcomes MSc and PhD students interested in small‑molecule drug discovery, chemical biology, target‑based design, and translational medicinal chemistry.
Key Expertise
- Synthetic organic chemistry
- Medicinal chemistry
- Natural product-inspired drug discovery
- SAR development
- Anti‑infective and antiviral drug design
- Kinase inhibitor development
- Anti-Cancer drugs
- Chemical biology and diagnostic probe design
- Collaborative translational research
Opportunities for MSc by Research and PhD Students
- Design and Synthesis of Novel Small‑Molecule Therapeutics: discovery of new scaffolds for infectious or oncological targets.
- Medicinal Chemistry of Kinase Inhibitors: optimisation of inhibitors for cancers such as TNBC.
- Drug Discovery for Neglected Tropical Diseases: antitrypanosomal and antituberculosis agents.
- Structure-Activity Relationship (SAR) Optimisation: iterative design to enhance potency, selectivity, and ADME.
- Development of Antiviral Small Molecules: targeting emerging viral pathogens including CHIKV.
- Chemical Biology Approaches to Neurodegeneration: probes and diagnostic agents for protein misfolding diseases.
- Natural Product-Inspired Drug Discovery: derivatisation and optimisation of bioactive natural scaffolds.
- Chemical Antibody Technologies for Diagnostics: small‑molecule-based detection platforms for neurodegenerative biomarkers.
- Computational and Experimental Target Identification: molecular docking, molecular modelling, and wet‑lab validation.
- Multi‑Target Drug Design: rational design of compounds acting on multiple disease pathways.
Collaborations
- UK and international academic partners
- Clinical and translational research groups
- Industrial collaborators in drug discovery and diagnostics
Contact
Dr Almahli welcomes enquiries from motivated students interested in small‑molecule drug design, kinase inhibitors and anti-cancer drugs, anti‑infectives, antivirals, natural product derivatives, and chemical antibody technologies. Prospective students are encouraged to get in touch to discuss project ideas and funding opportunities.