Irena Selicharová

Senior scientist and deputy group leader in the IOCB research group “Chemistry and Biology of Insulin and Insulin-like Growth Factors” led by Dr. Jiráček. Irena received her Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the Faculty of Science, Charles University. She subsequently conducted postdoctoral research as a Fellow of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science at the School of Fisheries Sciences, Kitasato University, Japan, in the Laboratory of Molecular Endocrinology. Since then, she has been working at IOCB.

The group’s research focuses primarily on structure–activity relationship studies of human insulin, insulin-like growth factors, and their receptors, as well as on the synthesis of insulin peptidomimetics aimed at developing new antidiabetic, anticancer, and neuroprotective agents. The group has made significant contributions to the detailed mechanistic understanding of insulin and IGF receptor binding and signal transduction—questions that have challenged the field for decades.