OUR TEAM

Reet Kurg

Team Leader

Reet Kurg received PhD in 2000 from University of Tartu and had additional training in USA (Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas) and Sweden (Stockholm University). Main expertise is biochemistry, molecular biology and molecular engineering. Head of the Core Facility for Cell Technologies, Professor of Molecular Biomedicine.

Anneli Samel

PhD student

Anneli Samel received MSci in 2019 in gene technology from the University of Tartu. She started her PhD in our group in 2019 with a focus on MAGEA proteins. NB! Check out her introduction video via Youtube link!

Fred Väärtnõu

Specialist

Fred Väärtnõu has an MSc from Tartu University and has previously worked in Tartu University Hospital Genetics center.

Alexey Nesterovich

MSc student

Alexey is currently working in our group after doing his Bachelors at TÜMRI (Institute of Molecular and cell biology).

Teivi Petersell

BSc student

Teivi is currently doing her Bachelors in our group

Margit Mutso

Research Fellow

Margit Mutso received PhD in biotechnology in 2016 (University of Tartu), had additional training in UK (Centre for Virus Research, University of Glasgow) and post-doc in the Institute for Glycomics, Griffith University, Australia. She has been part of vaccine development platforms of Chikungunya and Zika virus.

Kristiina Kurg

PhD student

Kristiina Kurg graduated 2017 as a medical doctor (MD) from University of Tartu and finished her residency in Laboratory medicine in 2022. From 2020 she is a PhD student in our group with a focus on MAGEA proteins and melanoma patients. Has been involved in development of diagnostic CE IVD kits in Icosagen. In her spare time she enjoys filming science experiments.

Evgeniia "Jane" Serova

Specialist

Jane finished her MSc in our group and now works here as a specialist.

Vadym Pelypenko

MSc student

Vadym is currently working in our group after doing his Bachelors in Biotechnologies and Bioengineering in Kyiv Polytechnic Institute

Ülleri Kärner

BSc student

Ülleri is currently doing her Bachelors in our group

Eve Toomsoo

Laboratory technician

Eve Toomsoo is responsible for confocal microscopy and flow cytometry, DNA and protein purification, data and material storage.

Baiba Brumele

PhD student

Baiba Brumele received BSc in Latvia (Latvijas Universitate) in 2018 and MSc at University of Tartu in 2021. She started her PhD program in our group in September 2021 with a focus on RNA methyltransferases. NB! Check out her introduction video via Youtube link!

Mihkel Suija

MSc student

Mihkel is currently doing his Masters thesis in our group.

Aleksandra Lupp

MSc

Alexandra did her BSc in our group and is now doing her MSc here as well.

ALUMNI

Piia Kivipõld

PhD

Piia Kivipõld (Uusen) did her PhD about Studies on the role of papillomavirus E2 proteins in virus DNA replication from 2007 to 2016. She currently works as a product manager at NOVA.

Kadri Õunap

PhD

Kadri Õunap did her PhD on the topic of The Williams-Beuren syndrome chromosome region protein WBSCR22 is a ribosome biogenesis factor from 2010 to 2017. She currently works at the Kuopio Center for Gene and Cell Therapy as a senior scientist.

Olavi Reinsalu

Research fellow

Olavi Reinsalu received MSci (gene technology) in 2015 from the University of Tartu. After that he worked for three years in the Competence Centre on Health Technologies (Tartu, Estonia). He defended his PhD in 2022 in our group. He now works with prof.V.Zadin in the EV field. NB! Check out his introduction video via the Youtube link!