A structural chemical biologist, Alessio Ciulli is one of the pioneers and leading experts in targeted protein degradation. This new modality of medicines is rapidly advancing, with over 50 drugs currently in clinical trials. He is best known for contributions to the design of small molecules for the von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) E3 ligase, widely used in bifunctional molecules known as proteolysis-targeting chimeras (PROTACs). There are at least four VHL-recruiting PROTACs in clinical trials today. His laboratory solved the first ever structure of a PROTAC ternary complex, elucidated the mechanism of action and revealed the principles for guiding rational design.
Ciulli studied chemistry in Italy, and received his Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge in 2006 under the late Professor Chris Abell, FRS. Following postdoctoral research, and a brief visit at Yale, in 2009 Ciulli started his own group at Cambridge. In 2013, he joined the faculty at Dundee’s School of Life Sciences where he has been full professor since 2016, and founder and inaugural director of the Centre for Targeted Protein Degradation since 2023.
Ciulli has received numerous awards and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. He has translated his fundamental science via making key compounds openly available, and via partnering with the pharmaceutical industry, and forming company spin-out, to develop protein degraders for targets in cancer and other diseases.
Professional position
- Professor of Chemical Structural Biology, School Of Life Sciences, University of Dundee
- Director, Centre for Targeted Protein Degradation, School Of Life Sciences, University of Dundee
