Our Team
Protalea Bio, founded in 2025 in Cambridge UK is a biotechnology company specialising in developing antibody therapeutics for the prevention of cancer and neurodegeneration.
Dr Elena Pavlova
FounderElena is a clinical research scientist at the Department of Medicine University of Cambridge with more than 20 years of research experience in rare genetic diseases, cancer immunology and development of innovative therapies for rare diseases. Elena's extensive research background in glycosphingolipid biology and rare diseases is fundamental to Protalea Bio's focus on targeting the sphingolipid pathway ensures the scientific direction aligns with her deep knowledge in this novel therapeutic area.
FounderDr Jelena Aleksic
Dr Olga Ignatovich
Dr Olga Ignatovich is a world‑class antibody engineer and an accomplished biotech leader with more than two decades of innovative research and development experience in the biopharmaceutical sector.
She completed her PhD and fellowship at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, where she worked with Professor Greg Winter on dual‑specific antibodies and single‑domain antibodies - foundational work that continues to shape the field. She led the Lead Discovery Group within the Biopharm Innovation Unit at GSK, driving antibody discovery campaigns through to clinical development.
Most recently, Olga served as Senior Director of Antibody Discovery and Co‑Head of the Cambridge, UK site at Agenus, a biotechnology company focused on immunotherapy
Scientific Advisor 