Dr. Issam Hmila | Hamad Bin Khalifa University

Dr. Issam Hmila

Postdoctoral Researcher

Office location

RC-B2-1426

Dr. Issam Hmila

Postdoctoral Researcher

Educational Qualifications

PhD in Biology

MSc in Biochemistry

Entity

Qatar Biomedical Research Institute

Divison

Neurological Disorders Research Center

Biography

Dr. Issam Hmila obtained his PhD in Biology between the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium, and the University of Tunis El Manar, Tunisia in 2010. He obtained an interuniversity diploma in advanced bioinformatics knowledge from the University-Paris Cité, France. He has also completed various courses in biostatistics, immunology, drug design, and discovery from international institutes.

His projects focus on the construction of combinatory libraries, phage display screening, and the engineering of nanobodies for immunotherapy. He was hired as an assistant professor at the Pasteur Institute in 2012, where he developed aptamers and new tools for detecting respiratory viruses of clinical importance in collaboration with the University of Minnesota, USA, and Uppsala University, Sweden. 

In 2017, he joined the Neurological Disorders Research Center at Qatar Biomedical Research Institute, where he conducted his research to develop new tools for therapy against Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases based on nanobodies and aptamers. His work focuses on the generation of cortical neurons from induced pluripotent stem cells and the evaluation by global transcriptomic, proteomic, and integrated omics, environmental pollutants, and new drugs with potential Alzheimer's disease modulation.

PhD in Biology

University of Tunis-El Manar, Tunisia

2010

MSc in Biochemistry

University of Tunis-El Manar, Tunisia

2004

  • Drug design and discovery
  • Nanobody and aptamer development and engineering
  • Evaluating the impact of pollutants on brain health
  • Develop diagnostic and therapeutic tools

Postdoctoral Researcher

Qatar Biomedical Research Institute, Hamad bin Khalifa University

2017 - Present

Invited Scientist

College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Minnesota, United States

2014 - 2015

Assistant Professor

Institute Pasteur of Tunis, University of Tunis-El Manar, Tunisia

2012 - 2017

Postdoctoral Researcher

Institute Pasteur of Tunis, University of Tunis-El Manar, Tunisia

2010 - 2012

  • First place in 2023 QBRI/HBKU research in Focus Day.
  • Intern collaborative project, by Institute Pasteur of Tunis (Tunisia).
  • 2013 early career MENA scientists research grant project (USA).