Abiodun Samuel Oyedele
Nashville,TN
Summary
Results-driven PhD candidate with over five years of experience in academic lab and biopharmaceutical R&D, excelling in upstream and downstream processing as well as analytical method development. Proven ability to optimize fermentation and purification workflows under GLP/BSL-2 guidelines, achieving significant improvements in yields and reduced cycle times. Expertise in HPLC/UPLC, LC-MS/MS, cell culture, and qPCR guarantees high data quality for drug discovery initiatives. Committed to leveraging this extensive background to drive innovation within a progressive R&D environment.
Overview
7
7
years of professional experience
Work History
Graduate Research and Teaching Assistant
Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN
08.2021 - Current
- Developed bioprocess workflows for microbial fermentation, increasing bacterial growth rates by 30% through media optimization and liquid/solid culture techniques
- Executed bioanalytical assays to characterize secondary metabolites, achieving 95% purity using HPLC, LC-MS/MS, and 2D NMR
- Designed and validated molecular biology protocols (PCR, qPCR, Next-Generation Sequencing), identifying novel biosynthetic gene clusters with 98% accuracy
- Utilized machine learning tools (antiSMASH, cblaster) to link natural products to gene clusters, reducing discovery timeline by 20%
- Collaborated with Vanderbilt Synthetic Core to scale up synthesis of bioactive compounds for high-throughput screening, supporting therapeutic development
- Mentored 60+ undergraduate students in laboratory techniques and led a high school student in honors research, fostering skill development in GLP environments
Intern, Discovery Chemistry Chemical Biology
Merck and Co, Inc.
Rahway, NJ
06.2024 - 08.2024
- Conducted solid-phase peptide synthesis (SPPS) and bioanalytical characterization of functionalized peptides, optimizing SAR vectors for RY-DC programs using Liberty Blue Synthesizer
- Troubleshot reactions and purified products, achieving 90% yield for
- N
- -methyl and benzyl-functionalized peptides under GMP standards
- Analyzed bioanalytical data to support peptide therapeutic development, contributing to project milestones presented at internal symposium
Summer Intern
Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN
06.2021 - 08.2021
- Synthesized and purified chiral proton PBAM catalyst, improving aza-Henry reaction efficiency by 15% through bioanalytical validation
- Characterized compounds using LC-MS and NMR, ensuring compliance with laboratory SOPs
Research Assistant
California Institute of Technology (Caltech)
Pasadena, CA
09.2020 - 05.2021
- Optimized multi-step synthetic routes for oxysterol intermediates, increasing yield from 26% to 75% via bioanalytical purification (HPLC, TLC)
- Developed scalable bioprocess methods for stereochemically complex molecules, supporting downstream therapeutic applications
Graduate Research and Teaching Assistant
Tennessee State University
Nashville, TN
08.2018 - 05.2020
- Performed
- In silico
- ADMET studies using SwissADMET and AutoDock Vina, identifying acridone derivatives with 80% improved anti-infective activity
- Synthesized and characterized organic compounds, contributing to bioanalytical development of topoisomerase II inhibitors for anticancer applications
- Coordinated and mentored 15 undergraduate students in chemistry labs, improving lab report accuracy by 25% through targeted feedback
Education
PhD Candidate - Chemistry
Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN05.2025
M.S. - Chemistry
Tennessee State University
Nashville, TN05.2020
B.S. - Biochemistry
Federal University of Technology
Akure, Nigeria09.2011
Skills
- Upstream Processing: Cell culture, microbial fermentation, media optimization, BSL-1/BSL-2
- Downstream Processing: Extraction, chromatography (HPLC/UPLC), purification, and scale-up
- Bioanalytical Development: method development, validation, metabolite profiling, LC-MS, LC-MS/MS, and NMR
- Assay & QC: Bioactivity assays (MIC), PCR, qPCR, & NGS
- Regulatory and Compliance: GLP, SOP creation, data integrity, and documentation
- Instrumentation: UHPLC, GC-MS, LC-MS/MS, FTIR, UV/Vis, SDS-PAGE
- Data Analysis & Software: Jupyter Notebook (Python), MestReNova, MetaboAnalyst, and AutoDock Vina
Selected Presentations
- Harnessing Machine Learning for Genome Mining: Discovery of Nocardicin Analogs., 5th International Conference on Natural Products Discovery, San Diego, CA, 2025
- Peptide On-Resin Primary Amine Functionalization., Merck New Jersey LINK Intern Session, 2024
- Exploring Machine Learning-Guided Genome Mining for Nocardicin Analogs., Gordon Research Conference on Marine Natural Products, 2024
- Genome Mining of Microbes for Secondary Metabolites Biosynthesis., ACS Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA, 2023
Awards
- American Society of Microbiology Future Leaders Mentorship Fellowship, 2025
- PREDICT Symposium Selected Presenter with Cash Prize, 2025
- Natural Products Discovery and Development Diversity Travel Award, 2025
- Merck/NSBE Intern Experience, 2024
- Genentech Foundation & ACS Career Kick-Starter Travel Award, 2023
- Graduate School Travel Grant, ACS National Conference, 2023
- Full Scholarship, Tennessee State University, 2018–2020
References
Available upon request.
Selected Publications
- Oyedele, A.S., Walker, A.S., 2025, Microbial Bioprospecting: Serendipitous Isolation of an Unconventional Iron-Chelating Antibiotic., In Preparation
- Kalmer, T.L., Ancajas, C.M., Oyedele, A.S., et al., 2024, Statistical Coupling Analysis Predicts Correlated Motions in Dihydrofolate Reductase., J. Phys. Chem. B, 128, 42, 10373–10384
- Ancajas, C.M., Oyedele, A.S., et al., 2024, Advances in Methods for Interrogating Structure-Activity Relationships of Natural Products., Nat. Prod. Rep., Advance Article
- Oyedele, A.S., et al., 2023, Synthesis, SAR, and
- In Silico
- ADME Screening of 9-Amino-3-Phenylacridone Derivatives as Topoisomerase II Inhibitors., Open J. Med. Chem., 13, 15–34
- Oyedele, A.S., et al., 2020, Synthesis, Biological Evaluation, and Virtual Screening of Acridone Derivatives as Anticancer Agents., Bioorg. Med. Chem., 28, 9, 115426
Timeline
Intern, Discovery Chemistry Chemical Biology
Merck and Co, Inc.
06.2024 - 08.2024
Graduate Research and Teaching Assistant
Vanderbilt University
08.2021 - Current
Summer Intern
Vanderbilt University
06.2021 - 08.2021
Research Assistant
California Institute of Technology (Caltech)
09.2020 - 05.2021
Graduate Research and Teaching Assistant
Tennessee State University
08.2018 - 05.2020
PhD Candidate - Chemistry
Vanderbilt University
M.S. - Chemistry
Tennessee State University
B.S. - Biochemistry
Federal University of Technology
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