Qi L.

Senior Scientist II, Medicinal chemistry and CADD @ AbbVie

About

CADD and medicinal chemistry lead with 6+ years of industry experience advancing oncology drug discovery across multiple modalities including small molecules and ADCs. Expert in integrating synthetic chemistry, structure-based design, generative AI, and in silico ADMET models to drive programs from hit identification through lead optimization and pre-GLP toxicology studies. Proven Project Team Representative with a strong record of modeling-driven discovery impact, cross-functional leadership, and external scientific visibility.

Country

United States

City

San Francisco Bay Area

Industry

Pharmaceuticals

Skill

Modeling, AI/ML, and Computation, Small Molecule and ADC Modalities, DMPK Strategy and Design, Medicinal Chemistry and Program Leadership, Biomedical Research, Molecular Modeling, Method Development, Structure-Based Drug Design, AI/ML-Driven Drug Design, Multi-Parameter Optimization, Project Management, High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC), Organic Synthesis, NMR, Organic Chemistry, UV/Vis, Medicinal Chemistry, Chemistry, HPLC, Mass Spectrometry

Experience

Senior Scientist II, Medicinal chemistry and CADD

AbbVie

2022-8 - Present · 4 yrs 2 mos

South San Francisco, California, United States

1) Pioneered first-in-class ADC payload and dual-payload linker–drug platforms, advancing next-generation oncology therapeutics 2) Directed end-to-end chemistry strategy and execution, leading DMPK design, CDX/PDX efficacy studies, rat/monkey tolerability assessments, developability evaluations, and in silico ADME modeling 3) Spearheaded modeling and computational workflows, accelerating the Design–Make–Test–Analyse (DMTA) cycle within Linux/HPC infrastructure 4) Developed and implemented AI/ML-driven, physics-based modeling, and cheminformatics platforms to optimize drug design, including REINVENT, predictive ADME models, Schrödinger (docking, QSAR, MD, FEP), MOE, VeraChem (VM2), OpenEye (ROCS, Freeform), RDKit, Pipeline Pilot, KNIME, and Python/Jupyter. 5) Managed internal and external chemistry FTEs across multiple programs, optimizing priorities, mitigating risks, controlling costs, and ensuring milestone deliveries 6) Mentored junior scientists on scaffold strategy, multi-parameter optimization, and AI/ML-driven design approaches

Senior Scientist I

AbbVie

2019-9 - 2022-8 · 3 yrs

Sunnyvale, CA

Postdoctoral Researcher

Stanford University

2017 - 2019 · 2 yrs

Stanford, CA

Advisor: Chaitan Khosla 1) Chemistry Lead: Designed and synthesized nucleoside mimics as Uridine-Cytidine Kinase 2 (UCK2) inhibitors for host-targeting, broad-spectrum antiviral applications in combination with DHODH inhibitor GSK983 2) Chemistry Lead: Discovered conglobatin-derived macrocyclic compounds targeting the Hsp90-Cdc37 protein-protein interaction for oncology indications 3) Developed and executed biophysical, biochemical, cellular, and dengue virus replication assays for in vitro compound profiling under biosafety level-2 conditions

Graduate Researcher

University of Pennsylvania

2013 - 2017 · 4 yrs

Philadelphia, PA

Advisor: Amos B. Smith, III 1) Designed and synthesized psymberin analogs exhibiting picomolar cancer cell-killing potency 2) Achieved the first total synthesis of an architecturally complex natural product nahuoic acid, and developed diversity-oriented synthetic approaches to analogs inhibiting epigenetic modifier SETD8 3) Developed a one-flask multicomponent union reaction method leveraging long-range silyl migrations

Undergraduate Researcher

Nankai University

2010 - 2012 · 2 yrs

Tianjin, China

Advisor: Yue Chen Completed total syntheses and structure–activity relationship (SAR) studies of tetrapeptide microtubule inhibitors (MTi), including tubulysin U and tubulysin V