Humboldt University of Berlin | Germany
Dr. Essa M. Saied is a distinguished Senior Researcher in the Bioorganic Chemistry Department at Humboldt University of Berlin, Germany, and an Associate Professor of Biochemistry in the Chemistry Department at Suez Canal University, Egypt. His research spans the fields of bioorganic and biochemistry with strong expertise in synthetic medicinal chemistry, heterocyclic chemistry, small-molecule drug discovery, high-throughput screening, molecular modelling, virtual screening, enzymatic assays, anticancer research, and lipid chemistry in human diseases. He earned his Ph.D. in Organic and Bioorganic Chemistry from Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin in 2017 with a thesis on “Synthesis and Characterization of Inhibitors of Sphingolipid Metabolism,” following a Master of Science in Organic Chemistry from Suez Canal University with an excellent grade and earlier pre-master coursework in Organic, Physical, and Inorganic Chemistry. Dr. Saied has secured several competitive grants and fellowships, including the Yousef Jameel Ph.D. Fellowship, the EXIST-Gründerstipendium for the “Lipotools – Lipids in Focus of Pharmacological Drug Development” startup, the Royal Chemical Society Researcher Development Grant, and funding from the Deanship for Research & Innovation, Ministry of Education in Saudi Arabia. His professional experience reflects a strong international footprint, serving as a senior researcher in Berlin since 2017, a visiting scientist at Children’s Cancer Hospital Egypt (57357), and a former CEO of the “Lipotools” startup, alongside progressive academic roles in Suez Canal University. His major scientific interests include drug synthesis and development, small-molecule screening, computer-aided drug design, development of biochemical and enzymatic tools, lipid-based disease research, and drug repurposing to treat human diseases.
Featured Publications
"Dyslipidemic SPTLC3 Integrates Bile Acid-FXR Signaling with Sphingolipid Remodeling in MASLD", M Visentin, Z Gai, A Kovilakath, F De Luca, G Panteloglou, A Othman, bioRxiv, 2025.
"Editorial on research topic Medicinal Chemistry for Neglected Tropical Diseases Using In-vitro, In-vivo and In Silico Approaches", SN Mali, EM Saied, CBR Dos Santos, J Neves Cruz, Frontiers in Chemistry 13, 2025.
"Integrative Metabolomic, Network Pharmacology, and Experimental Evidence for Lepidium sativum Seed Extract as a Natural Modulator of Pulmonary Fibrosis via the ncNRFR/Let-7d", IM Alanazi, HH Abo Nahas, DI Mohamed, N Hosny, YHA Elewa, Pharmaceuticals 18 (12), 2025.
"Multi-targeted azacoumarin–cyanocinnamate hybrids induce G 2/M arrest and apoptosis via tubulin, and COX-2/VEGFR modulation: insights from in vitro mechanistic basis", MA El-Zend, IM El-Deen, RM Mansour, TA Yousef, AA Alrashidi, RSC Medicinal Chemistry, 2025.
"Exploration of the anticancer efficacy of a novel 1, 3-thiazole analog in an ehrlich ascites carcinoma model: in vivo and in silico insights into hepatorenal protective", M El Behery, DM Abo-Elmatty, M Alsunbul, YIM El-Deen, DI Mohamed, RSC advances 15 (25), 2025.