Ioannis Athanasiadis
Position: PhD Student, IMPRS-LM
Room no.: CP-02-111
Telephone no.: +49 231 755 7054
Member of the group since: 03/2026
University Degree: B. Sc. In Chemical Biology, TU Dortmund University
Expertise: Organic synthesis, Medicinal Chemistry, Structure-activity relationship, Drug design
Off-Lab activities (hobbies): Gym, table tennis, swimming, basketball
Research projects:
Akt(protein kinase B) is a serine/threonine kinase, consisting of three isoforms Akt1, Akt2, Akt3 and a central effector of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signalling pathway, one of the most frequently dysregulated cascades in human malignancies. Hyperactivation of Akt signalling drives tumor cell proliferation and survival, establishing it as an attractive and important target in cancer biology.
In my project, I’m working on the development and synthesis of covalent-allosteric inhibitors to isoform selectively target the Akt isoforms and regulate their functions. Covalent allosteric inhibitors combine irreversible covalent engagement with allosteric stabilization of the inactive conformation, delivering enhanced potency and prolonged target occupancy.
Earlier positions:
Bachelor studies in the group of Prof. Dr. Daniel Rauh with the topic: Design and synthesis of covalent-allosteric inhibitors targeting the protein kinase Akt
Student Assistant at the TU Dortmund University in the working group of Prof. Dr. Daniel Rauh
Internship in the working group of Prof. Dr. Hansmann at the TU Dortmund University on the synthesis and characterization of novel polymerizable Quinoxaline-based squaric acid amides (SQXs) and their derivatives