Irina Apostolou

She is an immunologist by training and an accomplished drug discovery and translational research leader with over 13 years of cross-functional leadership roles in large pharma and biotech in the therapeutic areas of Immuno-Oncology, Autoimmunity, Inflammation and Oncology.
Irina has a deep experience in developing and executing strategies for target mining, selection, validation, and at advancing drug programs from discovery to in vitro and in vivo proof-of concept, PK/PD, and safety pharmacology studies.
Throughout her professional experience in the pharmaceutical industry, she has acquired an extensive experience working with and forging successful, long-term relationships with academic investigators, and is well-versed in conducting scientific and technical due diligence and assessment for partnering, investing, and licensing opportunities.
As part of the OTD Alliance Corporate Team, Irina serves as the primary scientific liaison between Harvard OTD and the Alliance partner to spearhead the identification of projects.
She works closely with Harvard faculty and their research teams to develop project proposals that bridge the gap between basic research and the drug development process, and manages project execution in collaboration with Harvard faculty.
Irina earned her B.Sc.
in Molecular Biology & Genetics, M.Sc.
in Cellular & Molecular Genetics, and Ph.D.
in Genetics & Immunology from the Paris-Sud University in France.
She was also a Research Fellow and an Instructor in Pathology at Harvard Medical School.