Brian Sosa-Alvarado
Director, Structural Biology & Platform MOMA Therapeutics
Dr. Brian Sosa is Director of Structural Biology and Platform at MOMA Therapeutics, where he leads multidisciplinary teams integrating structural biology, protein science, and biophysics to advance discovery from target validation to lead optimization. Prior to MOMA, Brian held scientific leadership roles at KSQ Therapeutics, Morphic Therapeutic, and Biogen, driving structure-guided discovery across oncology and immunology programs. He completed postdoctoral training at NYU Langone Medical Center and MIT, where he developed expertise in protein structure and biophysical characterization. With over a decade of experience, Brian is passionate about building discovery platforms that translate molecular insight into actionable therapeutics.
Seminars
Thursday 5th February 2026
Panel Discussion: Tackling Complex Targets & Modalities in Modern Drug Design
3:00 pm
Exploring the unique hurdles of designing drugs for RNA, PROTACs, and beyond. Panellists will discuss structural and physicochemical challenges, computational and biophysical tool limitations, permeability and delivery barriers, and the need for novel screening and optimization strategies to unlock these emerging therapeutic modalities.
Discussion Points:
- What structural and physicochemical features make RNA, macrocycles, and PROTACs especially challenging compared to small molecules?
- How can computational chemistry, structural biology, and biophysics be adapted to better interrogate these modalities?
- What strategies are most promising for improving permeability, stability, and delivery of large or complex molecules?
- How can we build robust optimization workflows to balance potency, selectivity, and drug-like properties across different modalities?
Thursday 5th February 2026
Decoding the Structural Basis of DNA Polymerase θ Function to Unlock Novel Cancer Therapeutics
2:30 pm
- Unveiling the cryo-EM structures of Polθ helicase bound to DNA and how structural rearrangements facilitate error-prone double-strand break repair
- Positioning 3′ single-stranded DNA ends to align complementary bases
- Highlighting structural determinants and potential allosteric sites for therapeutic intervention
- How structure-guided drug discovery is advancing first-in-class Polθ inhibitors to address DNA repair vulnerabilities in cancer
